The Story of Helga G Pataki
by popdiva24
Summary: Tragedy strikes the Pataki household when a surprise fire threatens to force Helga and her family out of the house. What would happen if the Pataki's were forced to move in with the boarders of Sunset Arms? Read and find out…
1. Chapter 1

The Story of Helga G. Pataki

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><p>Tragedy strikes the Pataki household when a surprise fire threatens to force Helga and her family out of the house. What would happen if the Pataki's were forced to move in with the boarders of Sunset Arms? Read and find out…<p>

Story takes place after FTI, but TJM never happened.

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><p><strong>HELGA's P.O.V.<strong>

It started out as a typical Saturday afternoon at the Pataki household. Bob had been downstairs with his fat ass planted on the coach watching "The Wheel" since noon and as usual, Miriam was passed out in her bedroom after going on one of her late night smoothie binges. Sheesh, it didn't take a genius to figure out that her so-called 'mystery smoothies' were probably chalk full of every alcoholic beverage known-to-man on account of there were always bottles of whiskey, scotch, and beer lying around the house since _Miriam _was always either too wasted to pick them up or too lazy to even care. And don't even let me get started on _Olga._ She was quite literally, the bane of my existence. Seriously, ever since Olga moved in a couple of weeks ago, there has never been a moment of peace and quiet to myself without being constantly reminded of how much better she is than me. It's always, 'Olga, tell us about the time you saved that cute little Inuit boy from drowning in the ice' or 'Olga, show us the ten thousand trophies you have practically bursting out of the living room.' I get it. My sister's the most perfect creature on the planet and I'm nothing but a shadow compared to her. A real Mother Theresa. Geez, tell me something I don't know.

When Olga's around, it's like the whole place is practically radiating with her presence and she always expects me to _bond _with her or something even though I always end up pushing her away so that it doesn't turn out like some love fest and drive me completely insane.

So, where does that put _me_ in the story? Well, as usual, I was upstairs in my room writing in one of my Arnold diaries—sue me, the guy inspires me—when all of a sudden, Miss Perfect herself comes barging in and proclaims that she is going out to pick up some ingredients for some award-winning, fancy ass meal she's planning on making for the family. And of course, the only thing I can do is roll my eyes and sarcastically tell her that her idea sounds perfect so the poor girl doesn't end up annoying the crap out of us by moping around here all weekend long, complaining that her 'baby sister' doesn't think a nice meal with the family sounds peachy. Crimeny, as if we all need a repeat incident of the one time I switched one of her perfect little A's to a B+. Now, that was a living nightmare. Miss Goody-two shoes wouldn't stop crying about it for weeks until I finally couldn't take it anymore and confessed to the deed—with the coaxing of Arnoldo, of course.

Anyways, so then Olga decides to run and tell Bob about her big plan after waking up and telling Miriam and of course, she _has_ to ask Bob of all people to remember to put the clothes in the dryer and turn it on a low setting during one of his most favorite TV programs of all time while she's gone. I rolled my eyes again. Yeah, like that was ever going to happen. Even if you told the guy the world was ending, he'd still be parked in front of the TV shouting for everyone to 'keep it down, the best part is about to start'.

But strangely enough, it did happen.

About a half an hour after Olga left, Bob actually did remember to put the clothes in the dryer and change it to a low-setting, just as Olga had asked. Huh, wonders never cease…

But what he didn't account for was one of the metal hangers falling into the dryer before he closed the lid. Clumsy Bob was too focused on getting back to his program that he hadn't bothered to look back into the dryer before shutting the lid.

And so…that brings us to what happened next.

Olga returns, everything's all peachy for a moment when everyone takes five to enjoy the special dinner Olga made, everyone returns to what they were doing for about an hour until…

Smoke—and a lot of it.

"Where the heck is that coming from?" Bob shouted angrily, looking around for any traces of where the smoke had traveled, completely missing the black smoke seeping through the door to the basement.

Miriam and Olga were scoping out the kitchen, once again, failing to notice the cloud of billowing smoke emitting from the doorway.

I put a hand to my face. 'Crimeny, was everyone in this household _blind_?'

"Gee Dad, maybe you should check the basement. After all, most of the smoke seems to be coming from it." I suggested in a sweet tone. _'Nimrod.'_

"The basement, eh?" Bob Pataki questioned, more to himself as he came right in front of it and observed it a little. "You do have a point there, little missy."

'_No duh, Sherlock…' _I thought with another eye roll.

By now, all four Pataki's were gathered in front of the doorway, watching as Bob Pataki meticulously grabbed hold of the doorknob.

"Oh Daddy…be careful." Olga voice sounded through the air.

"Hot!"

We all watched in shock as Bob quickly retracted his hand from the handle.

"Olga, get me the fire extinguisher!" Bob ordered, looking to me.

Before I could reply with my usual, _'It's Helga, Dad. Helga.'_, the real Olga was already on it, rushing to the kitchen to grab the red fire extinguisher by the window. It wasn't long before she returned and handed it over to Bob to which he quickly positioned the fire extinguisher and nodded in my direction to open the door.

I gulped. Me?

"Really dad? You're asking me to touch the same door handle that you couldn't even hold onto for two seconds without pulling away because you were afraid it was going to burn your hand off?" I said, frowning. _'So much for good parenting…'_

And wouldn't you know it, Olga of all people came to my rescue.

"Daddy!" Olga exclaimed. "You can't expect poor Helga to touch that handle!"

"She's right, B…" Miriam agreed, tiredly.

"Then how the hell am I supposed to open the door?" Bob argued impatiently.

"By wrapping a washcloth around the doorknob! Doi! Try using that brain of yours once in a while, Bob." I said angrily. I didn't care. If he couldn't care less about me, why should I for him?

"Hey, hey, hey! Watch that tone, little lady!" Bob said firmly. "Instead of wasting more time here, you could make yourself useful and get me one of those washcloths you keep going on about."

I sighed. "Fine, dad…I'll go and get a washcloth." I said concedingly as I walked over to the bathroom closet, grabbed a white washcloth, and wet it in the sink. Then I marched back over to where Bob was standing and tried handing it to him, but he refused.

I blinked, confused. _'What the heck is he doing? Why won't he take the stupid rag and get on with it already?' _

All my questions were answered when he finally spoke.

"Why're you handing that to me? You open it." He said, looking to the door.

'_What the-?'_

"Fine!" I said as I wrapped the cloth around the door knob and turned it.

"Be careful, baby sister." I heard Olga squeak as I thrust open the door and shrieked as a huge wave of fire came out at me. I barely had enough time to lurch to the side before Bob Pataki was on the scene, spraying the fire down. Some of the fire seemed to be dying down and the fire extinguisher was working until…

K-chk.

Nothing.

K-chk. K-chk.

Still nothing.

We all watched in horror as Bob Pataki shook the bottle furiously, if not desperately, trying to get the fire extinguisher to work again.

K-chk, K-chk, K-chk.

Nothing.

"Come on, you darned thing…" Bob grumbled, clicking multiple times before he groaned in frustration, hurling the fire extinguisher into the fire.

Big mistake.

The second he threw the extinguisher, all hell broke loose. Literally.

"Nice going, Dad…" I said sarcastically as the fire began to engulf the entire basement.

We all had to back away as intense heat warmed our bodies. Black smoke was all around us. The fire was now spreading at an exponential rate. Lamps, tables, sofas, the TV set, and all the walls were ablaze. It was too late to stop it now. The fire was going to run its course, whether we liked it or not.

Suddenly, all the smoke detectors sounded. It was about darned time. Sheesh, was it faulty wiring?

But now was not the time to worry about that. Our house was on fire, which meant…

In a panic, I rushed upstairs to my room to try to salvage whatever I could before they were all consumed by flames. It seemed that Bob had the same thing in mind as he also rushed upstairs to his room to try to salvage his prized possessions.

Once in my room, I opened my closet door and watched in horror as my entire Arnold collection along with all my clothes was now ablaze. My heart dropped, my throat constricted. I could not believe what was happening. I let out a high, ear-piercing scream that I'm pretty sure the entire neighborhood could hear.

Suddenly, Olga came bursting through the room. Needless to say, her shocking presence nearly caused me to have a heart attack.

"Baby sister, are you okay? I heard screaming and thought you might be hurt." She said with a tearful look on her face.

"I'm _fine_, Olga." I hissed venomously. Then, I sighed, calming myself. "I just want to be alone." I grumbled, more to myself.

Now was not the time for her dramatics. I mean, sure she was just trying to be a good sister and all by making sure I was okay, but I _was_ in the middle of one of my Arnold monologues after all and I preferred not to be disturbed. I mean, really. She couldn't have picked a better time not to really bug me. She was like my own alternative _Brainy _for Cripes sake. And to make matters even more perfect, Miriam comes bursting into the room to join her.

"Helga sweetie, you alright? I heard screaming." She said, a bit worriedly.

"Yes, I'm _fine_, Miriam." I said in the same harsh tone I gave Olga. "I'd just prefer to be alone."

"But what was all the screaming, baby sister?" Olga asked sincerely, as if my anger didn't faze her.

I blinked, instantly forgetting my anger. _'Crimeny, why did she have to ask THAT?' _

"I…uh…was just…" I stuttered, fumbling frantically for excuses. Then, the answer hit me. "…screaming for help. Yeah, that's it. Screaming for help." I said, trying to make my tone sound more convincing. Then, I narrowed my eyes at them. "Got a problem with that?"

For a moment, Olga and Miriam just gave me this blank stare, then looked to each other for answers while I just stared lamely at the two of them, hoping beyond all hope that they hadn't wised up in the last few minutes and would actually buy my excuse this time around. As if to answer my questions, they both turned to me again with the same blank looks. Then suddenly, Olga giggled. Giggling? WHAT the heck was I supposed to make out of that?

Miriam spoke. "Well, that's fine dear. But could you keep it down? Your father's in the other room, rummaging through his Beeper collection for his prized Beeper belt." She said, nonchalantly. I blinked. _'Keep it down? The whole building was on fire for Cripes sake and I'm supposed to 'keep it down'? Crimeny, I'm surrounded…'_

Suddenly, we heard a loud scream coming from Bob's room. Then, we heard Bob's voice sound throughout the house.

"OLGA! MIRIAM! GET YOUR BUTTS OVER HERE NOW! IT'S IMPORTANT!" He yelled angrily. On cue, Olga and Miriam left the room.

"Oh daddy!" Olga exclaimed as she was leaving.

I rolled my eyes. _'Sure, leave ME out dad…' _I thought, begrudgingly. _'Or did you mean me and called me your precious Olga instead?'_ Whatever. It's not like it had anything to do with me anyways. Besides, I had better things to worry about.

"Now, where was I?"

I stopped to think before looking at the pile of ashes before me. Then, I snapped my fingers.

"Oh yeah…"

I fell to my knees in utter despair, now cradling the ashes of where my beloved Arnold shrine used to be.

"Why? Why? Oh Arnold, my love. Why did this have to happen to you? Oh, my knight in shining armor, come save me from this horrible nightmare where I'm forced to live without your wonderful presence there to aid me in my time of need." She recited dramatically. "What has the world come to that we must part and I must bid you adieu, cast you away ruefully, and never look back?"

Tears rolled down my face freely. "Oh Arnold, why must life be so cruel? To take away the only thing that has offered me solace for the last 7 years, save your beautiful face to guide me?" I heard the crackling of the fire become louder as everything around me now burst to flames. I let out a squeak when part of the ceiling came down right next to me, ablaze. Panicking, I quickly got up from my spot and headed for the door, taking one last glance back at my cherished, burnt Arnold collection.

"Alas, I take my leave, my love. All those precious years of writing, of speaking your precious name, in waste, but in memory, you will forever remain in my heart." I recited sadly. On impulse, my hand flew to my chest. I gasped. _'It's still here!' _I thought as I reached into my jumper and pulled out the one thing I had to remember my Arnold collection by.

I gazed at the golden, heart-shaped locket lovingly and smiled when I saw the same Arnold giving his half-lidded smile, gazing back at me. Lovesick, I couldn't help but give it one chaste kiss. I felt so happy. So relieved. There was hope. Arnold was the only thing in my heart that no one could ever take away. I would love him dearly 'til death do us part. I kissed it one last time for good measure before returning it to my jumper. Then smiling, I reached for the door knob, but gasped when it felt burning hot. I instantly pulled my hand away.

I felt the door. It was warm, which meant…

My eyes widened. _'Oh…my…'_

"HELP! MOM! DAD! OLGA!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

No answer.

I felt trapped. I did not like this. I did not like this at all. I tried again, even louder.

"HELP! I'M TRAPPED IN HERE! CAN'T YOU HEAR ME? TRAPPED!" I said, banging on the door.

No answer.

"HELP ME!" I yelled, tears falling down my face, banging furiously.

No answer.

My eyes widened when I saw smoke seeping through the cracks of the doorway. I started coughing at the fumes. Frantically, I searched for anything that could keep the smoke at bay—anything at all. I tried stuffing all my blankets through the bottom of the door. That seemed to help a bit. I let out a relieved sigh, that is, until I turned around and looked back at my room. Fire was all around. I was surprised that the fire hadn't blocked the door hours ago. But now was not the time to think of that.

I had to think of a way out.

I looked to the window. "Oh well…worst comes to worst, I could always jump..."I said, walking over to the window to examine the distance down.

I gulped. "…and then totally KILL myself! What am I crazy? Uh-uh! There is NO way I'm jumping out the window." I said, defiantly.

Suddenly, I heard the familiar sounds of fire trucks ringing through the air. I let out another sigh. Help was on the way. They'd eventually find me up here and I'd be out of here in no time. Happily, I looked down to see reporters, neighbors, and police cars gathered right outside our house. To my surprise and relief, I saw Mom, Dad, and Olga standing together outside. Olga was crying and talking to the policeman worriedly while Bob was pointing up to my window frantically. My usually quiet mother was directing ten firemen on how to hose down the house. I struggled to try to listen to what they were saying, but sighed as I got nothing. And there was Phoebe, my best friend, looking around the place worriedly. Strangely enough, no one saw me standing there in the window. I was about to call down for help to let the buffoons know I was up here when a shocking sight caught my eyes.

There was Eugene, happily helping out one of the firemen next to one of the fire hydrants to get the hoses running.

'_Oh no! Not him. ANYBODY but HIM!' _I thought, horrified. I watched as Eugene held one of the hoses and gave the fireman the thumbs up before the fireman turned on the hydrant. Instantly, high-power water came bursting out of the hose, forcing poor Eugene up into the air, losing control of the hose.

"WHOA!" He yelled in surprise.

I don't know how, but somehow Eugene managed to take out all ten of the firemen standing outside of their vehicles, knock over both fire trucks, and use up all the water in the city, all in one shot.

The impact of the water hitting the fire trucks caused poor Eugene to fly into one of the nearby trashcans. Of course, he replied with his usual "I'm okay…" to let us all know the poor kid wasn't too badly injured. 'Man, did nothing ever faze that kid?'

I watched as Eugene gave everyone his sappy smile as he tried to pull himself out of the trashcan, but ended up tipping it over instead, causing him and the trashcan to roll down the road and into the sewer. And once again, he gave his pathetic little "I'm okay…" to let everyone know he was okay.

'_Oh brother…'_I thought as I rolled my eyes. _'No, of course not. It just wouldn't be Eugene if anything ever fazed him.'_

I put a hand to my face. _'Great. Just great. I'm trapped up here about to die and my one hope of getting rescued becomes dashed all because EUGENE here is too clumsy to do anything right.'_ I sighed deeply. _'I'm doomed, aren't I…?'_

Part of me felt like just giving up and facing the music, but the other part of me thought of what Arnold would do in this situation. "Heh. Probably just look on the "bright side" like he always does." I said sarcastically, using air quotes on 'bright side'."

Oddly enough, as I was laughing at the thought and surveying the people on the "outside world", I was shocked to find Arnold of all people down there with a worried look on his face, talking to his friend, Gerald.

I gasped.

"A-ARNOLD?" I couldn't help but voice aloud. _'W-What's HE doing here?'_

Without missing a beat, Arnold searched around, looking for the source of his name being called. I felt my heart do a flip when his sea-green eyes met mine.

"HELGA!" He called up to me. "LOOK, EVERYONE! THERE SHE IS! HELGA'S STILL UP IN HER ROOM! WE HAVE TO SAVE HER!" He yelled, pointing up to me.

Everyone froze and looked to where he was pointing, all with happy and very relieved faces at the sight of me.

I gasped again, this time happily at what I had just heard. _'Arnold…he knows I'm up here…and he wants to rescue me. Oh Arnold, my love. I always knew that someday my prince would come.'_ I gazed back down into his sea-green eyes and let out a love sick sigh.

Suddenly, to my horror, the burning bookcase next to me came crashing down in front of me, hitting the wall at an angle. I yelped, barely having enough time to move away before being reduced to cinder by the fiery blaze. Several books tumbled down on top of me, but I managed to shake them off.

Slowly recovering from my near death experience for the third time today, I cautiously looked over to the place where the window should have been. My eyes widened when all I could see were tall, bright flames in front of me. The darned bookcase was blocking it!

'_Oh…my…' _I thought in a panic. I was trapped. My only hope—gone out the window. The fire was so close that I could feel the intense heat warming my body as I watched on in horror. I slowly backed away from the fire, at a total loss for what to do.

Until…

Heat.

I could feel intense heat warming up my backside. I jumped, turning around to find the source of the heat. Flames—all around me—and all I could do was watch. Black smoke filled the room. I gulped, moving away from the fire and headed towards the middle of the room.

Terrified, I brought my knees to my chest and huddled in a ball, rocking back and forth with my eyes widened. I was completely surrounded. There was nothing I could do…

…Well, there was _one_ thing. It was the only thing I could think of and that was to…

Scream! I let out the loudest high-pitched scream imaginable. I was so scared. I wanted someone—anyone—to come save me from this horrible nightmare. I didn't care what screaming would do to my reputation. I just knew I didn't want to be in this predicament anymore. I cried, letting the tears fall down my face freely.

I needed a hero and I needed one fast…

…

**ARNOLD'S P.O.V.**

"HELGA!" I called up to her window in utter surprise. I couldn't believe it. There she was, still up in her bedroom, standing by the window unnoticed by the crowds of people swarming below. I was so shocked; I didn't know whether to feel upset or relieved that I had finally found her. On one hand, Helga wasn't hurt, which was a good thing. But on the other hand, she was trapped in a burning building, which meant that she didn't have long before the fire eventually consumed her. I knew one thing for sure though—time was of the essence. I had to act now before it was too late. I had to let someone else know where she was. "LOOK, EVERYONE! THERE SHE IS! HELGA'S STILL UP IN HER ROOM! WE HAVE TO SAVE HER!" I yelled, gathering everyone's attention.

I saw all of their heads turn in my direction, following my line of vision to Helga's window.

"Oh no! Someone save that poor little girl!" A middle-aged, heavy-set woman with short, curly red hair exclaimed worriedly.

"Baby Sister!" Olga cried out as black mascara streamed down her face.

"Oh…my…" Mrs. Pataki said before placing a hand to her forehead and promptly fainting.

"Hey! My kid's up there! Isn't anybody going to do something?" Bob Pataki shouted angrily at some of the still dazed firemen.

'_Oh man, what bad timing…if only Helga could see her family now, then she'd know for sure how much they truly cared for her.' _I thought, shaking my head in dismay. It was kind of ironic. Here, Helga's family had always neglected to give Helga the attention she needed when she was present, but only now, when their daughter's life was at stake, had they finally stopped and paid attention to her, except Helga wasn't there to see it. Before I could think further on this new discovery of mine, a familiar voice brought me out of my thoughts.

"Oh, I hope she's ever okay…" Lila said worriedly, her attention still focused on the burning building in front of us. It was clear that she hadn't noticed me yet, but her voice was enough to catch me off guard.

"Lila?" I said, surprised.

Lila blinked, turning to me with the same surprised look on her face. "Arnold?" She asked. "What ever are you doing here?"

"I was just about to ask the same." I responded, still in shock that she was actually here.

"Oh…well, I heard that there was a fire at one of our fellow student's house so I just rushed over to make sure everything's alright and if possible, help out where I'm needed." She answered.

"Oh, well…that's very nice of you, Lila. Gerald and I just came here because we wanted to see what all the commotion was about." I explained. "Isn't that right, Gerald?" I said, expecting to hear a response in return, but no response came. "Gerald?" I questioned.

I looked beside me to find no one there. I scoped around the area to find Gerald talking to Phoebe, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

"Gerald!" I exclaimed, putting my hands on my hips.

Both Gerald and Phoebe immediately turned to me.

He blinked. "Huh?" he said, his eyes laced with confusion. He quickly recovered. "Oh, um, yeah sure man. Whatever you say." He replied. "But…um…just so that everyone's clear on what we're talking about, could you maybe repeat the question heh, heh?"

I rolled my eyes. It was obvious he hadn't heard a word I said. "Sure, Gerald." I said, with a small smile. But before I could open my mouth to explain everything to Gerald, a high, ear-piercing scream caught my attention.

'_Helga…'_ I thought as I looked back to her window. To my horror, I could no longer see Helga standing there. All I could see were flames now, but the sound of her voice had told me that she was still alive. At least for _now_. But who knew how long she had before she wasn't? I gulped. Something told me that there wasn't much time left before…I didn't even want to think about what could happen. It was too terrifying. All I knew was that I couldn't lose Helga. She was somehow…_special_ to me.

Someone I couldn't bear to live without.

All around me, everyone was panicking.

"Someone should do something! That poor child is in danger!" one woman said.

"There's no more time left, the house is on its last leg. That girl's a goner," a tall, slender man replied.

"Not even the firemen can save her now. All the water's gone," another man responded.

"What that girl needs now is a miracle." An elder woman said.

"What about a ladder? Maybe we can—" A man suggested.

"Sure. _You_ can. But I don't see what the use is if you can't get through the window." Another man objected.

"Perhaps we can use the fire extinguisher next to one of the fire trucks?" a blonde-haired woman tried.

A man shook his head. "Tried it. It's only half-full. There wouldn't be enough to get through the entire house."

"Well, someone's got to try. I mean, we can't just leave the poor girl up there." A scholarly man said.

"Well, _I'm _not going. I've got a family to worry about." A newspaper boy said.

"I'm not either. It's too dangerous. One of us is sure not to make it out alive." A brunette-haired woman said, carrying a small child.

Suddenly, Bob stepped in. "Alright ya bunch of wusses. She's my daughter. _I'll _do it since all of you are too chicken to risk your precious lives in a small fire." He announced bravely.

We all looked at him in awe. Big Bob Pataki was actually offering to go inside a burning building to rescue his own daughter. If that wasn't noble, then I didn't know what is. But as Bob began to make his way over to one of the fire trucks to grab the extinguisher, he ended up tripping over one of the fire hoses. He immediately fell to the ground with a thump.

Everyone gasped as he slowly spun around to a sitting position with a stern look on his face. Hesitantly, a small boy asked, "Mister, are you okay?"

Big Bob initially sent a sharp glare in his direction, but eased off when he saw how frightened the boy looked from his glare. He waved him off dismissively.

"Yeah, yeah, kid…I'm fi—OW! MY KNEE!" Bob screamed in agony as he tried to get up. He promptly fell back to the floor, clutching his knee tightly. The look on his face showed that he was in a lot of pain.

Worriedly, I rushed to his side. "Mr. Pataki, are you alright?"

He frowned. "AM I ALRIGHT?" He exclaimed. "KID, DO I LOOK 'ALRIGHT' TO YOU?"

Before I could answer, Olga came up to us and knelt by her dad. "Take it easy, daddy. You don't want to push yourself too much." She said, worriedly.

Then, she gave me an apologetic smile. "You're a nice boy, Arnold. Thanks." She said.

I smiled. "Sure thing." I said.

Suddenly, Bob tried to move again, startling us both.

"Daddy, stop it. You need medical attention." Olga argued, holding his shoulders.

Whatever the case, Bob didn't get too far. He screamed in pain and had to sit back down again. He looked to me. "Helga…she's still in the house…have to…rescue her...before…OW!" He said, after struggling to get up again.

Lila suddenly turned to me, distress clearly etched on her features. "Oh Arnold, we have to do something. Helga's in ever so much trouble." She said, worriedly.

"I know…" I agreed.

Phoebe looked solemnly at the ground. "Please, there's not much time left…Helga is..." Tears trickled down her cheek as she tried to continue. Gerald placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up into his soft brown eyes sadly.

"It's okay, Phoebe. We know…" He responded reassuringly.

As I looked to my friends and Helga's family, it was then that I knew what I had to do. Without another word, I made a mad dash for the fire extinguisher. I quickly grabbed hold of it and began to make my way towards the burning house. However, before I got close to it, Gerald stopped me.

"Um…Arnold? What are you doing?" He said, with an eyebrow arched.

"Something that I need to, Gerald. Helga's not just our classmate, she's our friend and—"

"Helga G. Pataki? You mean the same _Helga_ that's a bully and has been torturing you for most of our lives. That Helga?" He asked disbelievingly.

"I know it sounds crazy, Gerald, but trust me on this. I mean, she may _act _like bully and all, but that doesn't mean she deserves to die. She means a lot to her family, friends, and…"

'_To me…'_ I thought automatically. My eyes widened in shock at this new revelation. Helga meant that _much_ to me? No, no…what was I thinking? Sure, I considered Helga as one of my closest friends but…wait a minute. When did she become one of my closest friends? She was my bully after all, but when she didn't act like one and opened up to me…she actually wasn't that bad. Not bad at all. It was actually kind of…nice hanging out with her—when she didn't try to push away. In fact, I kind of…liked it. My mind instantly drew to the kiss we shared on top of FTI. I shook my head. Now was not the time to think of that.

On received a questioning look from Gerald, I quickly continued what I was saying. "…And it just seems like the right thing to do."

Gerald just gave me an odd look for a moment before finally giving in. "Alright, man. If you say Helga's okay then Helga's okay. As your best friend, I'm with you every step of the way. You're a _bold _kid, Arnold."

My smile grew. "Thanks, Gerald." I said appreciatively.

"Hey, no problem, buddy. But you know...that altruistic attitude of yours, you know, of '_doing the right thing'_ is gonna get yourself killed one of these days. Mark my words." He said with a grin.

"Yeah, well…let's hope that day isn't today." I said, laughing.

Gerald and I did our secret handshake with our thumbs and I set my sight on the burning building ahead of me. As I was walking towards the building, people's eyes were glued on me, watching my every movement. I even heard people whispering, some of them good remarks such as "Such a nice, brave boy going into the building to save that little girl" and some of the remarks not so good such as "Dead man walking…" Either way, I tried not to focus too much on them as I made my way to the door of the burning edifice.

As I turned the door knob, I had to jerk my hand away for a second because the doorknob was hot. I felt the door. It was warm. I instantly knew there was fire behind it. There was no time to lose. I positioned the fire extinguisher as I opened the door carefully. I had to jump back a few feet as I felt intense heat coming back at me as the door fully opened. I sprayed the fire thoroughly, making sure to clear a path through the house. As I took my first few steps inside, I felt as if I was quite literally walking into an inferno. Thoughtfully, I wondered how Helga was able to stand it in there in the blazing heat for so long. I kept the door open behind me, spraying a path through the flames as I made it up the staircase.

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><p><strong>BACK IN HELGA'S ROOM<strong>

_Please Note: I'm not going to make this section in any particular P.O.V. because I want to cover both Arnold and Helga's thoughts at the same time…_

…_Ok fine, I like third-person. There. I said it. _

_Got a problem with that? _XD

* * *

><p>Helga sat in the middle of her room terrified by all the fire and smoke around her. All the smoke was making it hard to breathe in there. Plus, the heat was really starting to get to her.<p>

'_Ugh! I can't take it anymore! No one's coming to rescue me. I'm just going to either die in here of suffocation or get burnt to a crisp trying to claw my way out of here. Either way—I'm toast!' _She looked over to her right and caught sight of a familiar red object underneath her bed. Hastily, she reached for it quite surprised that it remained unscathed by the fire. _'What luck! My shoe!'_ She thought as her mind drifted back to the night she pretended to be Cecile just so that she could get a date with her _beloved _Arnold. _'Heh. I'm surprised the old football head hasn't figured it out yet…'_ She thought, chuckling to herself humorously. _'Then again, it just wouldn't be my beloved if he sprouted a brain all of a sudden…'_ Then a thought hit her. "Although…what DID happen to my other shoe that night? The last thing I remember is reaching for the shoe the same time as Arnold…" She voiced aloud with a perplexed look on her face. Then, she sighed.

"Oh well…it was good while it lasted. At least in my final moments, I'll have this to remember you by…" She remarked thoughtfully. She pulled out her locket from her jumper, observing it. "Oh yeah…and this thing too." She said.

She gazed lovingly at the smiling picture of Arnold with his half-lidded gaze. "Oh Arnold…look at you, so happy, so charming. Yes, my sweet prince. It was worth seeing your face one last time. To be able to gaze into your enchanting sea-green eyes…so full of hope, so full of wonder…how I live for the day that I would be able to kiss your soft, pink lips…to feel your flaxen, golden hair through my fingertips as I melt into those strong arms of yours. But alas! I digress. I will settle for a simple picture that only shows a glimpse of your true beauty. My lips will touch thine own in spirit as I hold this locket that holds the key to my soul. Forever in my heart, my love and to thine own heart, be true." She recited, happily giving the locket one long kiss adieu.

But as her lips touched the locket, a surprise visitor entered the room, unbeknownst to Helga. Needless to say, this was not the sight that Arnold was quite expecting.

"HELGA?" He exclaimed. His eyes widened, in shock at the sight before him. Alarmed, he dropped the fire extinguisher allowing it hit and roll on the floor with a bang.

Helga jumped, quickly ending the kiss with her locket, stuffing it and the shoe back into her jumper, and turning around to face Arnold.

"ARNOLD?" She also exclaimed, equally as surprised. She rose to her feet. "That is…what are you doing sneaking up on me like that, Football Head?" She quickly tried to recover._ 'Oh Crimeny…I hope he didn't just see what I think he saw…' _She thought. _'Great…now I'm sure my life is over…'_

Not yet fully recovered from the unusual sight of Helga kissing a locket with his picture in it, Arnold answered nervously. "I…uh…came here to recue you…" _'That…uh…c-couldn't have been…me that she was kissing just now, right?'_

Meanwhile, Helga just gaped at him. _'He…came…here...to…?' _

"Alright, what's your angle? Who sent you?" Helga demanded, suspiciously. _'I'm on to you, Football Head. No one pulls one over on Helga G. Pataki and gets away with it.' _She thought there had to have been some catch. There's no way someone would just free willingly risk their own lives without expecting some form of payment in return.

Arnold shook his head, coming to his senses. He decided that he would deal with what just happened later. For now, he pushed that thought aside and moved onto other things…like being trapped in a burning building. Then, Helga's question finally registered in his mind.

He had to chuckle. This reaction had been something he'd been expecting from her and he knew just how to handle it. "No angle, Helga. I just…really wanted to help you." He answered truthfully. Then, he gave her his half-lidded smile. "And besides…I came here on my own."

Helga blinked, now in complete shock. She couldn't believe it. He actually came alone? No one sent him? She almost had to verify that she heard him right. "I'm sorry, wha—what did you just say?" She asked incredulously.

Arnold's grin only grew. "I said, I wanted to help you, Helga. That's why I came here." He said.

Helga didn't know what to say. Thank you? Somehow, those words didn't seem to express how grateful she felt to him at this moment. She wanted to hug him, shower him with kisses, and melt into his arms. But she knew she couldn't. That would probably confuse him even more and she didn't want to creep him out or anything. But she was just so happy! No one had ever done anything this special for her before—no one. It was like a dream come true and before she could stop herself, her overwhelming happiness caused her knees to buckle underneath her and she fell to the ground, blacking out.

Arnold blinked. Not knowing what to think of what just happened. Was she okay? Did she inhale too much of the carbon monoxide in the air or was the heat getting to her? Either way, Arnold's instincts immediately set in and he rushed to Helga's side, kneeling down to her position. He picked up half of her body, putting her in his lap to raise her to a semi-sitting position.

"Helga? Helga, are you okay?" He asked, looking at her worriedly for any signs of exhaustion. Besides her fainting, she looked perfectly fine.

Helga slowly opened her eyes, hearing his beautiful voice, like music to her ears. And of course, the sight of his beautiful face led to one of her monologues again. She forgot where she was for a second, believing this to be some wonderful dream. She sighed dreamily.

Arnold blinked. This was new…

"Oh Arnold, my love, my angel, my savior. I'm alright, now that you're here. You saved me from such a horrible demise. Oh, I knew someday my prince would come…how might I ever repay you my love?" She said, giggling airily.

Okay, now Arnold was just a little creeped out. Love? Angel? Savior? Prince? Those were not the nicknames that he was used to hearing from her. Where was all of this coming from? Was it just because he saved her life once? And Helga…giggling? That was unheard of…well, unheard of by _him_ at least. But now that he thought about it, hearing that light sound escape her lips instead of the mocking one he was used to hearing from her all the time was actually…kind of nice. _'Maybe I should save her life more often…_' He thought with a half-lidded smile.

…Wait. What? What on earth was he thinking suggesting that he should save her life more often just to hear more of those nice nicknames and giggling from her? It shouldn't even be a big deal to him. He just…got a little carried away there for a second. Yeah, that's it…carried away. It could happen to anyone…right?

He paused his thinking when he heard her continue again.

"Oh yes, but how will I thank you, my love? How?" She thought for a moment, gazing dreamily into his eyes. "Oh yes! I know! I'll just have to kiss you."

Whoa! Kiss? That was where he drew the line!

"Helga, I'm really worried. Are you sure that you're okay?" Arnold said, shock now evident on his face.

"Mmhm…never better…" She said softly, now leaning up in his lap so that she was positioned a few inches from his face.

Arnold's eyes widened. "Helga! I really think this needs to stop!' He barely managed to get out and he promptly let her drop to the floor before their lips could touch.

"Ow!" Helga complained, rubbing the back of her head. "Geez, try to be a little easier next time, Arno—" She ceased her small tirade and blinked in surprise at Arnold. Arnold currently had his back to the door, eyes widened, with a deep blush creeping up his face._ 'That…that was close…she…I…and then we…'_

"Sheesh, what's eating you, Arnoldo?" She asked, her hands on her hips. _'Why does he look like that? Gosh, I hope I didn't do anything weird when I was out…man, why do I feel like a bus hit me?' _She thought, her mind now preoccupied.

Arnold shook his head from whatever thoughts he was having. "Oh, uh, n-nothing…" He answered, flustered.

Helga blinked. Not knowing what to make of that. Whatever _that _was, it didn't sound very convincing. _'Oh no…maybe I really did do something weird. Let's see…the last thing I remember was overwhelming happiness and passing out. So…' _Her eyes widened in realization. _'Oh please no, not that. I didn't…monologue about him, did I?' _Then, she took a deep breath. _'Okay, calm down, Helga old girl. I can just…make him forget everything that's happened. Yeah, that's it. After all, he DID forget about the FTI confession…right? Oh yeah…this will be a piece of cake. I'll just play it off like I'm angry and never speak of this again.'_

"Well, take a picture. It'll last longer." She said, with a hmph. _'Perfect. A typical Helga G. Pataki response. Helga, old girl. I don't know how you do it.'_

That response seemed to snap Arnold out of his stupor as he just rolled his eyes before reaching for the forgotten fire extinguisher. He sprayed the entire room and the bookcase of the fire until…

K-chk.

Nothing.

K-chk. K-chk.

Still Nothing.

Uh-oh. Where had Helga heard that before?

K-chk. K-chk. K-chk.

Nothing.

"Well, Helga…it looks like we're out." Arnold said, solemnly.

"Great. Nice going, Casanova. Now we're both stuck in this room." Helga said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Wait, Helga. Before we go jumping to any unnecessary conclusions, why don't we feel the door first to make sure that there actually is fire behind that door?" He stated, patiently.

"Whatever. We'll do things _your _way, Football Head. But you know this will only validate that I'm right." Helga said, placing a hand on the door.

It was warm.

"Yep, no surprise there. Obviously, you were never cut out to be a fireman, Arnoldo." She responded.

Arnold just let out a frustrated sigh. What happened to the nice Helga he was talking to just a few minutes ago? And why was she so good at knowing how to really push his buttons when she wanted to? Either way, he knew he had to keep cool and find another way out. Otherwise, they'd be in the same boat that Helga was in before he had even come up here.

Without a word, Arnold walked over to the fallen bookcase blocking the window. He examined it for a moment before walking over to the side of the bookcase that was leaning against the wall. Grabbing on to the both edges, he began struggling to push the bookcase back up to its original position beside the window.

"Great. _Now _what are you doing, Football Head?" Helga criticized sarcastically.

Arnold didn't answer as he continued struggling to move the bookcase, but it was to no avail. The bookcase wouldn't even budge. He paused to catch his breath for a moment.

"Hmph. As if that's going to do any good, Arnoldo. You're like a feeble little butterfly compared to that thing. There's no way you can lift it." Helga stated matter of factly.

"Hey…um… Helga?" He asked suddenly.

"Oh brother…what is it _now, _geek bait?" Helga said, feigning annoyance.

"Instead of criticizing me, would you mind…um…giving me a hand?" He asked, his sea-green eyes meeting hers.

"Fine, but I'm only doing it because it looks like you can use all the help you can get." She answered casually as she walked over to where Arnold was standing. Inside, she was swooning. _'Yeah right…as if I could ever turn down a face like that.'_

Arnold gave his half-lidded smile as he moved over to make room for Helga. "Thanks, Helga."

"Yeah, yeah…let's just get this over with already." She replied plainly as she held onto the side of the bookcase near Arnold.

Together, they both struggled to push the bookcase to its upright position. And they kept pushing until finally…

…it budged! Slowly, but surely, they were able to heave the bookcase up to its original position beside the window. Relieved, they both stood where they were for a moment to catch their breath. That's when Arnold noticed something strange about Helga's jumper.

"Hey…Helga?" He asked tentatively.

"Yes Arnold?" She replied, too exhausted to say otherwise.

"There's…uh…something I've been meaning to ask you." He started.

That seemed to snap her out of her fatigue. _'He wants to ask me something?' _She thought as she searched around frantically for what he could be inquiring about. Then, it clicked. _'Oh Crimeny, please let it not be THAT!'_

"S-sure Arnoldo. Go right ahead." She managed to verbalize, repressing her nervousness.

"Helga, is there something in your—"

"HEY LOOK! THERE'S THAT BRAVE, YOUNG GOY THAT WENT INSIDE THE BURNING BUILDING!" A person interrupted.

They both blinked at the interruption, having forgotten that they were trapped in a burning building at the moment. They both looked out the window and down to the crowds of people swarming below.

"HE'S ALIVE! I DON'T BELIEVE IT!" Another person shouted.

"HEY ARNOLD!" Gerald yelled up. "WHAT'S UP?"

Hearing his best friend's voice calling up to him, Arnold decided to respond.

"WHAT'S DOWN IS MORE LIKE IT, GERALD! HELGA AND I ARE TRAPPED UP HERE AND WE KIND OF NEED YOUR HELP!"

"HELGA'S UP THERE?" Arnold heard Olga yell.

At hearing her name being called by her older sibling, Helga muttered an "Oh brother…" from behind him as she walked up to the window to make her grand appearance. "YEAH OLGA…I'M RIGHT HERE…" She yelled down.

"HEY, CHECK IT OUT! THAT GIRL'S ALIVE TOO!" A person cried.

"WHAT A MIRACLE!" Another person cried.

"OH MY GOSH! BABY SISTER!" Olga cried out in happiness.

"YEAH, YEAH…I'M ALIVE, SO CAN WE PLEASE CEASE THE WATERWORKS ALREADY? UNLESS…OF COURSE, YOU WANT TO USE THEM TO PUT OUT THE FIRE…" Helga said the last part jokingly.

"Anyways, now that that's out of the way…what's this brilliant plan of yours with Geraldo, Football Head?" Helga said nonchalantly. Although internally, her mind said, _'Oh Arnold…such a visionary.'_

"Ok, Helga. I'll show you." Arnold stated calmly.

"HEY GERALD!" Arnold shouted down.

"YEAH?" Gerald came in response.

"DO YOU KNOW OF ANYONE THAT HAS A TRAMPOLINE DOWN THERE?" Arnold asked.

"Trampoline? Don't tell me, you mean to—" Helga started, but stopped when Arnold put a finger to her lips. He gave her his half-lidded smile. "Hush, Helga. You need to be silent and listen to this plan for it to work." He said.

Helga widened her eyes. _'Sheesh, when did the old football head get to be so bold?'_ She thought. Part of her wanted to be angry at him because no one tells Helga G. Pataki what to do, but the other part of her couldn't help but be a little attracted to this new _bolder_ side of Arnold. Fine…she would let it slide this time around, but the next time the 'bucko better watch out'.

Satisfied that he had actually gotten Helga to quiet down, he slowly removed his finger from her lips. He smiled. It was kind of nice being in control for once.

"HEY ARNOLD! ONE OF THE FIREMEN SAYS HE HAS A LIFE NET IN THE BACK OF HIS TRUCK THAT WE CAN USE!" Gerald answered enthusiastically.

"GREAT! THANKS, GERALD!" Arnold called back.

"HEY! NO PROBLEM MAN! SO…YOU TWO JUMPING THEN?" He asked.

"YEP! THAT'S THE PLAN!" Arnold responded.

"MMM…MMM…MMM…ARNOLD, YOU ARE ONE _BOLD_ KID, MY FRIEND…" Gerald replied in disbelief.

"So let me get this straight. You want us both to jump three stories down into a tiny trampoline despite everything else being on the fritz and you just expect me to go along with it? Nuh-Uh. No deal, Arnoldo. You better come up with something more brilliant next time 'cause I ain't jumping." Helga said defiantly.

"Aww come on, Helga. Do you have any better ideas? And besides, it won't be so bad. It'll be over before you know it." Arnold said, convincingly.

"Hmph. Yeah…when I'm DEAD!" She shouted.

Arnold's eyes widened in realization. He gave a sly smirk. "Don't tell me…you're not afraid of heights, are you Helga?" He teased.

"I…uh…no, of course not! I'm just a little concerned is all! Why you've got a problem with that, paste-for-brains?" She asked, trying to make her argument sound a little more convincing.

"No, Helga. Whatever you say…" He responded with a look that said he didn't believe her. "But …if it makes you feel any better, we can always jump _together._" He knew that was the key that would convince Helga to jump.

"Well…I…" She responded indecisively.

Arnold smiled knowingly at her. One more push…

"That is, if you trust me." Arnold said with a half-lidded smile. "You _do _trust me, don't you Helga?"

"I…uh…" She looked around nervously. "Well…maybe I can jump with you, just this once, Football Head since you're practically _begging _me to…"

"Then you're wish is my command, Helga." He said, smiling as he casually took her hand in his.

He watched in amusement as a small red blush creeped up her face that he was sure it wasn't because of the heat.

Together, hand in hand, they walked up to the window and were relieved to see that the life net was already waiting for them at the bottom.

"ARE YOU GUYS READY?" They both heard Gerald question from the bottom.

Arnold looked to Helga and she gave a slight nod in his direction. He could tell that she was afraid through because she was squeezing his hand pretty tightly.

"YEAH, WE'RE READY GERALD!" Arnold answered back down.

Arnold took a deep breath, keeping his focus on the outside. "Ok…here we go and—"

"A-Arnold!" Helga shouted to get his attention.

Startled, he looked over to Helga. "Yes, Helga?"

"I…uh…I don't know if I can do this…" She said, taking a big gulp.

Arnold saw the fear in her eyes and smiled reassuringly. He gave her hand a quick squeeze before he spoke. "Helga, it'll be alright. I'll be right here with you."

"Promise you won't let go?" She said, shyly looking to their hands. Arnold's smile only grew. This was a whole different side he had never seen before. Helga, shy? It made him happy to see her open up to him like this.

"I promise, Helga. Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you. Ever." He said, giving her hand another tight squeeze.

"Well then…let's get this show on the road, Football Head." She said with more enthusiasm this time. But then she added. "But um…just for the record, I won't let anything happen to you either. Ever." She gave his hand a tight squeeze as well for good measure.

Arnold kept his half-lidded smile in her direction and the two nodded before jumping out the window together…and both landing safely in the life net the firefighters prepared. For a moment, the two just gazed at each other happily before the crowd interrupted their moment by cheering.

As if by a sudden miracle, water starting flowing in from the city, causing the cheering to grow even louder. Almost immediately, all the firefighters were on the scene, spraying down the house to take away all the remnants of the fire.

Helga just placed a hand to her head. "Oh. Come. On. The hoses start working _now _of all times?" She exclaimed incredulously.

"Well…look on the bright side. At least it's better late than never," Arnold responded positively, which only got an eye roll from Helga in return.

"Man, I've got to say, you really gave me quite a scare." Gerald said, walking over to them.

"I'm sorry for making you worry, Gerald. I'll try not to let it happen again." Arnold said, smiling apologetically.

"Nah, don't worry about it man. With that altruistic attitude of yours, something like this is bound to happen again. I only hope it doesn't give me a heart attack someday." Gerald said. They both laughed heartedly as Phoebe came over to talk to Helga.

"I'm so glad you're ok, Helga. I was really worried." Phoebe started out by saying.

"Ehh…don't sweat it Pheebs. I figure since neither of us has kicked the bucket yet, there's probably no need to stress about it." Helga said, patting her friend on the back.

"Well, I guess, if you say so, Helga…" Phoebe said reluctantly. "And you're sure you're alright?"

"Yep, just peachy." Helga answered dismissively.

When she saw Phoebe look at her uncertainly again, she said, "Geez, don't get all sentimental on me, Pheebs. I already told you I'm fine. Sheesh, what is this? A Spanish soap opera?"

Phoebe gave a small smile towards Helga, relieved to hear the old Helga acting like her usual self again. She nodded in reply and before she knew it, they began talking about other things.

"So what up with you and Geraldo?" Helga asked with a sly look on her face.

"H-helga! That is, I-I don't know what you're talking about." Phoebe stuttered.

"Oh come off it, Pheebs. Practically the whole _school _knows that something's been going on between you two so you might as well spill it already. Sheesh, it's not like it'll make much of a difference…" Helga said, giving her best friend the look.

"Well, it's…kind of personal, Helga. I don't know if I really should—"

"Yeah, yeah, but I'm your _best _friend, Pheebs. Come on, I've even disclosed to you some of _my _most deepest, darkest secrets." Helga replied. Then, she looked around to make sure no one was listening in on their conversation before adding, "You know…about _ice cream_."

Once she said the last part, her friend automatically knew who she was talking about. They had been using code names for Arnold ever since the notorious sleepwalking incident that had almost led Helga to confess her innermost feelings to Arnold.

"Well…I suppose I can tell you, Helga since you are my best friend." Phoebe relented.

"Really? That's great, Phoebe! And I promise, I won't tell a soul. Cross my heart." Helga said, waiting earnestly for Phoebe to spill all the details.

Phoebe took a deep breath before saying, "Well, you see, Gerald and I—"

"Arnold!" A familiar red-head interrupted.

Helga placed a hand to her head. _'Oh Crimeny! What now?' _She thought, irritated that they had been interrupted at such a crucial part. That is…until she saw who the voice belonged to.

"Oh. Hey Lila." She heard Arnold's voice reply casually.

Immediately, her head snapped in their direction. There she was, standing with a cheerful smile on her face, facing her dear, _beloved _Arnold and his friend, Gerald. Likewise, Arnold also wore a polite smile on his face as he addressed Lila calmly.

'_Lila! What's SHE doing here? And why is she wasting her time talking to Arnoldo anyways? I thought she didn't like him like him.' _Helga thought a bit sarcastically on the last part.

"Arnold, I just wanted to say that it was ever so brave of you to rescue a fellow classmate from that burning building." Lila said.

"It was nothing, really. I just thought it was the right thing to do." Arnold answered truthfully.

Lila giggled airily. "Oh Arnold, there's no need to be ever so modest. But I just think it's ever so sweet that you tried." She replied with half-lidded eyes.

"Yeah, yeah…we all get it. Arnold's a real Saint. Now move it along, little Miss Perfect. I haven't got all day." Helga said, dismissively waving her on.

"Helga, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but don't you think you should be spending a little more time thanking Arnold. I mean, he did save your life after all." Phoebe suggested.

"Yeah, that's right. My main man risked _his_ life to save _your _butt Pataki. So you better be grateful." Gerald agreed.

"Aw, put a sock in it, Geraldo. No one asked you." Helga retaliated.

"It's okay guys. I'm just glad that everyone got out safely and if it wasn't for you guys, Helga and I would still be trapped in that burning building." Arnold said cheerfully.

"Hey, no problem man. We're friends 'til the end." Gerald said.

"Indeed," Phoebe agreed.

"Oh brother…is this love fest _ever _going to end?" Helga exclaimed dramatically.

Watching the scene before her with a small smile, Lila decided that was her cue to continue with what she was saying from earlier. "Anyways Arnold—"

"Whoops! I guess I spoke too soon." Helga interrupted sarcastically.

"_Helga_…" Arnold said, giving her a look before turning back to face Lila. "Now, you were saying, Lila?"

"I wanted to thank you just ever so much by asking if you would like to join me in going to the movies tomorrow to see "Enchanted Bunnies II"?" Lila asked with a hopeful look on her face.

His eyes widened in shock. "Lila, are you asking me out on a _date?_"

Not too far away, Helga's face wore the same shocked expression. _'Lila…on a date with…Arnold? This can't be happening! Oh, please tell me this isn't happening!' _She thought worriedly.

"Well gosh, Arnold. When you put it that way, I guess I am." Lila answered.

Arnold rubbed the back of his head nervously as he answered. "Oh…well. Not that it wasn't nice of you to offer, but—"

"He'd love to go with you!" Gerald interrupted.

"What?" Arnold and Helga both voiced together in shock.

"Oh my…"Phoebe said, covering her mouth in horror at what was taking place.

"Really?" Lila asked enthusiastically, her smile much broader now. "Oh Arnold, thank you ever so much!" She pulled out a small piece of paper and wrote down some digits. She then handed it over to Arnold, to which he took reluctantly. "Here is my number. You can pick me up at 7. See you tomorrow, Arnold!" Lila said as she waved goodbye.

"Lila wait!" Arnold tried, but it was already too late. She was gone.

"Mmm…mmm…mmm…my man has a date tomorrow and he even got a girl's number." Gerald said, smiling and shaking his head in disbelief.

"Gerald...why did you set me up like that?" Arnold demanded.

"Phoebe, quick! Pretend to make idle chatter." Helga ordered to her best friend.

"Chattering!" Phoebe said as the two girls faced each other, pretending to talk about other things so they wouldn't be noticed as eavesdropping into Gerald and Arnold's conversation.

Gerald just shook it off nonchalantly, not realizing the severity of the situation. "Just trying to do you a favor, buddy."

"But Gerald, I didn't _want _to go on a date with Lila." Arnold responded, surprising both Gerald and Helga.

'_He didn't want to go on a date with Lila? Well, that's a start. But what if he ends up falling in love with her tomorrow?' _Helga thought, fearing the worst.

Gerald just blinked. "But you've been pining over that girl for ages now!"

"Yeah, well not _anymore_. And as soon as I get home tonight, I'm going to call Lila up and tell her the date is off." He answered determinedly.

Unnoticed by the two boys, Helga swooned inwardly at this. _'Dreams do come true! Arnold, turning Lila down? This, I've got to see!' _She thought with a smirk.

"Arnold! You can't do that!" Gerald argued.

Now, it was Arnold's turn to blink. "Why not, Gerald?"

"Because it'll break the poor girl's heart." He said. "Just think about it, man. If you call her up tonight and tell her it's over she's going to think you were playing with her heart earlier and she'll never speak to you again."

'_Yeah? And so?' _Helga thought._ 'Dump the broad! It's what she deserves anyways. She's the one playing with Arnold's heart now. Giving him false hope like that…dump her! Dump her!"_

"Well, I guess I never thought of it that way…" Arnold responded, leaning more towards the idea.

"And besides, it's just for _one _night. How bad could it be? All she wants to do is thank you." Gerald insisted.

"You know what? I think you're right, Gerald. Maybe it won't be so bad. And like you said, it is only for _one _night." Arnold said, warming up to the idea.

"That's right man. So we good for tomorrow?" Gerald asked.

Arnold gave his half-lidded smile. "Sure, Gerald." He said. They both did their secret handshake.

'_No, no, no! This can't be happening! Stupid Gerald and his stupid convincing! Now I can only watch as little Miss Perfect comes by and steals my beloved from me right under my nose! Why must life be so cruel?' _Helga thought dramatically.

"Umm…Helga? Not to interrupt your thoughts or anything, but don't you think maybe now's the time to tell _ice cream _how much you appreciated it risking its life to save you?" Phoebe whispered.

"Good idea. You distract, Geraldo over there and I'll try to talk to Arno—I mean, _ice cream._" Helga agreed.

"Distracting!" Phoebe chimed as she walked over to Gerald and began talking to him.

Meanwhile, Helga saw her opportunity with Arnold alone and used that to her advantage.

"So…how's it going, Football Head?" Helga asked from behind Arnold.

He jumped, obviously not expecting her. "Helga!"

"Not so _brave _now, are you Arnoldo?" Helga insinuated.

Arnold gave a frustrated sigh, getting the hint from Lila's remark earlier. "Look Helga. You don't have to feel obligated to thank me or anything—"

"And who says I wanted to thank you. Football Head?" Helga said defensively.

"No one did. I just don't want you to feel obligated because anyone said you had to," He answered calmly.

"Good. Because I _don't_." Helga stated.

"Ok then. Why are you here?" He asked curiously.

"It's a free country, Arnoldo. I can stand anywhere I want." She replied. "Besides, in case you haven't noticed, I don't exactly have a home to go to anymore."

Arnold instantly had a look of guilt on his face. "Helga, I'm really sorry this happened. I—"

"Save it, Arnoldo. If I wanted your pity, I would've asked for it." She said, annoyance evident in her tone.

"Oh." Arnold responded solemnly.

It was silent for a few moments as the two of them just stood there. Helga, in particular, was debating between telling Arnold how truly thankful she was and not telling him at all.

'_Come on, Helga. Just say the two words: 'Thank You' That's all you have to do. Don't let this pass you by…you can do it!' _She thought. With all her might, she managed to force out two words, not quite was she was looking for. But oh well, it was a start.

"Arnold I—"

Arnold turned to her, his sea-green eyes meeting hers for the third time today.

"Yes, Helga? What is it?" He asked sincerely.

"I…just wanted to say…what I mean is, the real reason I'm over here…is because…I wanted to —"

"Young man! How did it feel to walk into a burning building with no real source of protection on you?" A woman reporter interrupted, shoving a mike into Arnold's face.

"How does it feel to be called a hero?" Another man reported shouted.

"What was your motive behind saving this poor child?"

"DO you believe that good Samaritans exist out there like you?"

Pretty soon, about twenty reporters were crowded around Arnold, sticking microphones in his face, snapping pictures. They were acting like the darn paparazzi for Pete's sake. And Helga was booted right out of the circle.

Arnold cast an apologetic glance in her direction. He mouthed the words. "Sorry, Helga." And then turned his attention to the reporters, answering their questions.

Helga didn't bother to watch. What was the use anyways? It was obvious that it wasn't her that they were after. They wanted Arnold, the life saver. Not Helga G. Pataki, the damsel in distress. However, what happened thereafter immediately caught her attention.

A large, husky gray hair man in a light-green shirt hobbled over in a shin splint to where Arnold and the reporters were standing. It was Big Bob—her dad, hopefully coming to his daughter's rescue…_or not. _Helga watched in horror as her dad marched right into the circle, pushing reporters aside like pillow cushions. He completely bypassed his own daughter, not even checking to see if she was alright, just to get to her _beloved. _But why?

"Alright, move aside ya bunch of pansies! I've got business to take care of!" He announced as he closed in on Arnold.

She raised an eyebrow. _'Business? With Arnold?' _She thought as she continued to look on.

Once he closed in, he automatically began pulling out a few hundred bucks.

Oblivious, Arnold simply greeted. "Oh hi, Mr. Pataki. How's that leg doing?"

"Fine. So what do I owe ya kid? $100? $200? Name your price." He asked.

"Mr. Pataki, that's really not necessary—"

"Nonsense. You rescued my child as promised so now I have to offer you something in return."

Oh brother. Now he saw where Helga got it from.

"Really, Mr. Pataki. That's not—" Arnold tried to explain, but was interrupted again.

"ARNOLD?" Helga exclaimed in surprise, causing both Bob and Arnold to turn their heads toward the source. Her eyebrow was furrowed in anger. "I get it. So rescuing me was all just some quick way to gain some publicity and an easy buck. Wasn't it, Arnoldo?" She exclaimed angrily.

"No Helga, I swear, I didn't—"

"Save it, Arnold. You _lied_. Now _face_ the consequences." Helga cut him off.

"Whoo! That's some temper that girl's got. I'll…see ya later, kid. We'll talk this over some other time." Bob said, fleeing the scene.

"But Mr. Pataki—" Arnold tried calling after him, but to no avail.

"Look, Arnold. This is between _you_ and _me_. I don't appreciate being lied to like that. You told me that no one sent you, that you weren't doing it for anything in return, and that you came just to rescue me. For once, I truly believed that someone else cared that much about me. But I was wrong." Helga said, tears now coming to her eyes.

"Helga, really. I would never—" Arnold replied sincerely, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Just stop, Arnold." Helga stated, shaking his hand from her. "You've done enough already."

Just then, Phoebe and Gerald walked in on the scene.

Arnold's expression wore a painful look on his face. "Please, Helga. Let me speak. You've got it all wrong. I meant ever word." He responded.

"Is this what you were planning to say to me all along?" She responded bluntly. Her face became hardened.

"No, I—"

"Look, I don't know what this is all about. But Pataki, you have gone way too far on this one. I know Arnold and whatever you think he's—"Gerald insisted.

"Have fun at the movies, Arnold. Let's go Pheebs." Helga cut in sharply.

"But Helga, don't you think—" Phoebe tried.

"I _said_, let's _go_ Phoebe." Helga responded sternly as she began to walk away.

Phoebe sighed. "Coming!" She said as she followed closely behind.

"Man, what's _her_ problem?" Gerald said, shaking his head in disapproval.

"Wait Helga!" Arnold tried to call after her, but to no avail. Gerald placed a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Forget her man. She's nothing but an ungrateful witch anyways. She has a problem. Fine then! There's no reason for you to get so hung up about it." Gerald said, with a small smile.

"But Gerald, you don't understand. I really think I made her upset. She trusted me, Gerald, and now she thinks I let her down." Arnold agonized.

"So?"

"So? What do you mean 'so'? Gerald, this is serious!"

"So, the girl's lied to you many times before and abused _your _trust, I don't see why you can't return the favor."

"But that's just it, Gerald! I didn't lie to her! Back in the burning building, I told Helga that I came to rescue her on my own—that I wasn't asked to by anyone else and that I wasn't getting anything in return. Well, she saw her father giving out cash to me and reporters around me and automatically assumed that I _lied _to her. But I didn't."

"Well, I really don't see what the big deal is about, but have you tried talking to her about it?"

"You saw. Every time I tried to get a word in edgewise, she cut me off."

"Mmm…mmm…mmm…I tell you. Normal kids out age don't have nearly as many problems as you do, my friend. But here's what you need to do: You need to make sure Helga listens to you one way or another, even if you have to sit her down for a moment in order to hear you. What you, my friend, have is a communication issue so that means once the communication issue is solved, there goes your problem."

"But what if she thinks that I'm lying again?"

"Hey, I'm a problem solver. Not a miracle worker." Gerald argued. "But if what you say is true about her trusting you so much, which I doubt is true, but let's say it is—then she'll listen. And besides, when have you _ever _lied?"

"You're right, Gerald. I have to make it so that she trusts me again and the only way I can do that is to talk to her. Thanks!" Arnold said, with his half-lidded gaze.

"No prob man! Remember what I said, friends 'til the end! I'll come with you for moral support!" Gerald replied.

They both did their secret handshake before setting off in their direction.

"Helga, can you please elucidate the reason behind the altercation between you and Arnold back there?" Phoebe practically begged for the umpteenth time already.

"Alright, alright! Crimeny, Pheebs! What are you trying to do—give me a lobotomy?" I exclaimed sarcastically. "Ok so here's what happened before you and Geraldo came in. Arnold and I were having an argument because I was angry that Arnold was receiving cash from Bob after he told me inside the burning building that no one sent him to rescue me, that he came on his own, and that he was doing it for absolutely nothing in return—yet he had the paparazzi practically swarming him and Bob out there shouting for him to 'name his price'. Crimeny, I trusted him Pheebs and he betrayed me. Because of what he did, I truly believed that he cared a lot about me and not the money or rewards that he would reap after the deed was done."

"I see…and what did Arnold say in response?" Phoebe asked.

"Arnold?"

"Yes, Helga. Surely, you must have let Arnold elaborate on his side of the story before you went ahead with your assumptions." She stated knowingly.

"Well…he tried…but I kind of kept cut him off heh, heh…whoo! Guess I jumped the gun a little, didn't I Pheebs?"

"Helga! This is no laughing matter! You have to go back there right now and at least hear Arnold out. Otherwise, you'll never know the full truth, Helga. Only what you think is true."

Helga sighed. "You're right, Pheebs. But…I can't talk to the ol' Football Head now; I practically bit the guy's head off for Cripes sake." She smiled gently. "He probably hates me…"

"He _might _hate you, Helga. But you'll never know if you don't try. And besides, when has he _ever_ hated you?"

"Yeah…I guess you're right. You win. I'll go back and talk to Arnoldo and hear his side of the story." Helga said.

"Good job! I'm so proud you, Helga." Phoebe cheered.

Helga sighed. "Yeah, yeah…"

But as they started heading back to Helga's house, they were both met with quite a surprise. Gerald and Arnold were walking towards them, the very people they wanted to talk to!

"Arnoldo! Geraldo! Imagine finding you two here. Back for Round Two?" Helga said, before being jabbed in the stomach by her best friend. "Ow, Pheebs! What gives?" She said, but paused when she received the look from her friend. "Oh alright! I'll play nice—if they give me a reason to," She muttered the last part.

"Helga, I think we need to talk." Arnold started.

"You've got that right, _bucko." _Helga stated.

"And I mean _actually_ let me talk this time, Helga. I'm done listening all the time." Arnold added.

"Fine. Start talking, paste-for-brains. I'm all ears."

Arnold gave a relieved smile. "Good." He said.

"Tick-tock, tick-tock. I don't have all day."

Arnold sighed. "Right…" Then, he started. "Helga, I didn't lie to you when I said I came to rescue you on my own nor did I lie when I said that no one offered me anything in return. Your dad just offered me money because he thought I wanted something in return.

"Right as well as the reporters just offered to swarm you and my dad just conveniently gave you money even though he's a stone-hard skinflint." Helga said sarcastically, with her arms folded above the chest.

"Helga, just trust me on this. Your dad isn't as cold-hearted as he seems. When you were in that burning building, all he could think about was finding a way to rescue you."

"Great. Only _one_ problem. He didn't rescue me."

"That's because he tripped and hurt his knee, which is why he was wearing a cast around his leg."

'_Great. Nice going, dad.' _"Okay, that story checks out, but how do I know that he didn't send you in there?"

"You don't, Helga. I guess you'll just have to trust me. You _do_ trust me, don't you Helga?" Arnold said with the same sly grin on his face.

"And when has my man _ever_ lied to anyone?" Gerald chimed in.

"Can it, Geraldo. This is between _me_ and _Hair boy_." Helga said.

Gerald just rolled his eyes.

"Well, Helga? What will it be? Do you trust me or don't you?" Arnold said.

"So this is what it all boils down to. Trust, huh? You think you're_ so_ smart."

"Just answer the question, Helga. _I_ haven't got all day." Arnold replied, now giving a bored look.

"Fine!" Helga shouted. "I trust you, Football Head…but only because you're too _goody-goody_ to act any way else."

Arnold gave a knowing look. "Whatever you say, Helga."

"Darn right, Football Head. Whatever _I _say." Helga said triumphantly.

"Well, now that we got that out of the way. Who's ready to head back to the Pataki house to see how the building is coming along?" Gerald asked.

"Fine by me, Tall Hair Boy. Lead the way." Helga stated.

* * *

><p><strong>CHECKPOINT!<strong>

Author's Notes: Yep, it's back to 1st Person Again. Sorry, it's hard to make up my mind.

* * *

><p><strong>HELGA'S P.O.V.<strong>

By the time we arrived at the Pataki Household, the firefighters had already done their job and the house only looked like something out of a horror movie. Most of the roof was gone and you would see pieces of floorboard missing on all floors. Not to mention that it didn't look like the Pataki's would be using the stairwell anytime soon. Final report: the house was a train wreck. Seriously, it looked like a bomb went off in there and no one bothered to clean it up. At this time, Geraldo and Arnold decided to call it a night and head back to their place after I assured them that everything was going to be fine. And honestly, I didn't blame them. We were already losing daylight outside, who would want to stay outside staring at a hideous house when you couldn't even see a darned thing. And most of the neighbors had left already. Huh. Probably figured the show was over…

My best friend, Phoebe, was nice enough to stay out a little longer with me—lovable chum—so I wouldn't have to wait out here all alone with no one to talk to. And then there was my family. Miriam had just woken up about an hour ago, wondering where she was, but when she saw the house, she promptly fainted again. Idiot. Strangely enough, she still had her blender in hand. And after Olga practically choked me to death with about a million of her hugs, she started crying over the loss of her trophies and even suggested that_ I _do it too, saying that 'crying is good for the soul'. Hey, I figured it must be true since _Olga_ has to be one of the purest of hearts. But, unfortunately, I had better things to do like…eavesdrop on Bob's conversation with the landlord of some crappy apartment I've never heard of.

"You've got to be kidding me! 400 smackeroonies a week! We need a place to stay for two weeks because our house is being renovated because of a fire! A fire, you hear me? A fire! Don't we at least get a little compensation for our loss? I lost my prized beeper belt and crown in that stinkin' fire for Cripes sake! That's $800 right there! What do you think, I'm made of money?" Bob shouted. You could hear the guy a mile away.

"I'm sorry sir, but our policy states—" The landlord started, but was cut short.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Don't you start that policy crap on me! I'm warning ya! I'm the owner of Big Bob's Beepers. I can rent this place right out of business if I wanted to."

"Then sir. If you could do that, why don't you just pay—" The landlord tried to argue.

"Because this place is too damn run down to be paying a kind of price like that!"

I cut in. "Dad, why don't you just pay the man already? It's only 2 weeks."

"Hey! You stay out of this, little missy! This is grownup talk now!" Bob snapped at me.

"And you!" he exclaimed, pointing to the landlord. "Haven't you heard that the customer is always right?"

"I'm sorry sir, but I'm going to have to call security if you don't calm down and—"

"CALM DOWN? CALM DOWN? YOU WANT ME TO 'CALM DOWN' AT THESE HIGH PRICES! CRIMENY, IT'S A WONDER I HAVEN'T SUFFERED FROM AN ANEURYSM BY NOW THE WAY YOU'RE RUNNING THINGS! YOU SIR, HAVE LOST YOURSELF AN EXCELLENT CUSTOMER!" He roared. Geez, by the way he was yelling, I would have to agree that it _is_ actually a wonder why Bob hasn't suffered from an aneurysm yet.

He stormed out of the apartment, making sure to slam the door on the way out. Exit stage left.

So after that little episode, the next few hours were spent searching around for one of the cheapest places to rent a room for two weeks. But nothing was ever good enough for skinflint Bob. It was always the same story over and over again. It was now 9pm and I was getting sleepy. I had already asked Pheebs several times if my family and I could move into her house for a couple of weeks, but she declined, saying that she didn't have enough space and besides, her parents were very terrified of Bob. So around 9:30pm, Phoebe leaves, she says her parents are imposing a curfew that says she needs to be home by 10pm.

And so…that leaves me to what happened next.

At around 10pm, Bob finally finds a place that could take us all at a cheap rate. And where was this place that decides to choose? Why, none other than the Boarding House of Sunset Arms. Yes, that same boarding house where Arnold lives. That one.

And so, here we are at the door of Arnold's apartment. I feel my heart quicken and my life start to flash before my eyes as Bob rings that fateful doorbell.

The door opens…

And who do I see?

You'll have to find out next time in the Story of Helga G. Pataki.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. #2: The Story of Helga G. Pataki

Author's Notes: Hey guys and gals! I was finally able to take some time to write another chapter! So I am proud to present you with Chapter #2! Also, I am so happy with the amazing response from the first chapter! Thank you everyone for your support! I hope you enjoy this chapter! Oh, and just to let you know, this chapter will be in 3rd person because it's fun to write in 3rd person.

Without further ado, I'd like to continue with Helga telling the story:

"So, anyways as I was saying before I was rudely interrupted by a certain someone…"

* * *

><p>The door opened, revealing Arnold's grandpa standing idly by the door with a sly grin on his face. "Well, would you lookie what we have here," he greeted, "It's that grumpy ol' fellow who yells all the time and wrecked my Packard a few months back! Imagine seeing you here on my front doorstop and oh! I see you've brought your family along as well."<p>

"Yeah, yeah, I'm not exactly thrilled to be here either, gramps. Especially since I have deal with the same idiot who can't admit that he cheated during our golf match!" Bob argued.

"Cheated?!" Phil exclaimed. "Why, I beat your arrogant patootie fair and square and you know it, Big Bob! You just can't admit that you tasted defeat against an old coot like me."

Big Bob turned red in outrage. "Alright! That's it! I don't have to sit here and take this. You want to fight me, old man?!" He challenged.

"Any time, anywhere, Big Bob…" He gave a half lidded smile, "or should I say, _all talk_?" He mocked.

"Bring it on, old man!" Bob said, standing menacingly before Phil.

"_Dad…_"

"Daddy!"

Helga and Olga warned in unison, giving their father irritated looks. They blinked and looked at each other for a moment before returning their glares on Bob.

Seeing his daughters' unhappy expressions, he begrudgingly backed off and relented from his attack. "I'll let you off the hook _this_ time, old timer, but I'm warning ya, don't cross me or I won't be as forgiving the second time around." He said, stepping back.

Internally, Phil thanked his lucky stars. _'Phew, that was a close one! I would've never stood a chance against someone like him! He looks like he could eat people like me for breakfast if he had the chance.' _He thought.

"Anyways," Bob continued, "I'm not here to argue with you, old man. As we discussed, my family needs a place to stay for a couple of weeks since our house is under reconstruction at this time because of that little fire incident that happened today. Now, I didn't come here to spend a fortune. The agreement was $200, no strings attached and there better not be unless you want to deal with _me_." He threatened.

Olga shook her head in disappointment while Helga rolled her eyes.

Seeing their reaction, Bob cleared his throat. "So, those rooms ready yet?"

"Well now, I promise that you'll never have to worry about there being strings attached in this boarding house. We folks keep our word, no questions asked." He thought it over for a moment, scratching his head. "Except maybe Oskar, now _he's _someone you have to worry about." Phil amended. "And those rooms you were talking about? Oh, they're spic and span and ready for you guys to occupy when you see fit. I only have two left, but I think it'll work out if we put two of you to a room. It just so happens that one of the bedrooms has a pull-out couch so the girls could probably take that room while you and your wife share the other bedroom."

Bob smiled. "Now that's what I want to hear! Where do I sign?" He said, eagerly.

"Well, come on in and step right into my office!" Phil replied, holding the door open for the Pataki family. The Pataki's took the invite and walked inside with Miriam and Olga struggling to carry two large boxes of beepers through the door and Helga holding a stack of Bob's clothes that he had somehow managed to salvage from the fire while rolling her eyes at him for not even bothering to help out at all as he followed Phil to his "office" upstairs.

"Hey Grandpa, who was at the door?" A familiar boy's voice called from upstairs. As he started descending the stairs, he was surprised to bump into his grandpa and Big Bob ascending the stairs. He froze, turning around to look at them.

"Mr. Pataki?!" He exclaimed.

His grandpa stopped and turned around, waving the matter off casually. "Oh, don't worry about it, Shortman. Just the usual business with tenants wanting to snag some rooms at the last minute. Carry on, and say hi to your little friend downstairs for me. What was her name again? Well, you know, that one with the one eyebrow and the pig tails." His grandpa replied.

"Helga?!" Arnold asked in surprise.

Phil snapped his fingers. "Yeah! That's the one!"

"Hey, hey, hey! I'm not paying you to sit around and talk to your grandson!" Bob responded, hurriedly.

"Anyways, gotta go take care of business! See ya when I see ya, Shortman," Phil said, before continuing up the stairs again with Bob trailing closely behind.

To say that Arnold was confused would be an understatement. He continued on his way, regarding the events with Big Bob and his grandpa before his thoughts were interrupted when he saw the rest of the Pataki family waiting in the hallway downstairs by the door.

He heard a gasp. "Arnold?!" Helga's voice exclaimed in surprise.

She quickly recovered, her face quickly settling into a frown, "Uh, what I mean to say is, I can't believe I'm being forced to live in this run down boarding house with you and your crazy family, football head."

"Hello to you too, Helga," Arnold replied in slight annoyance.

"Great welcoming party you have here, Arnoldo. We haven't seen a single boarder besides you and your grandpa." Helga remarked sarcastically.

Arnold looked at his watch showing a time after midnight. "Well, it's pretty late so I'm guessing almost everyone has retired to their rooms by now. What's the deal with you guys being over here anyways?"

"Doi! Isn't it obvious? We can't go to own our house right now because it's being repaired so skinflint _Bob_ decided we needed a place to crash at a cheap rate and your place just took the cake." Helga explained.

"Oh, I see…" Arnold replied.

"Geez, no need to sound so excited, Arnoldo." Helga remarked with sarcasm. "Don't worry, the sentence is only for two weeks. After that, my family and I will be out of your hair!"

"No, it isn't like that at all, Helga. Your family is welcome to stay for as long as they like. It's not a sentence." He countered, not wanting her to think that he didn't want her or her family there.

"Oh _please_. You're about as good a liar as I am good at speaking like Phoebe." She replied, obviously not buying it. "No one, I mean, _no one_, should have the deal with the same things that I have to put up with my so-called "family"."

"But Helga, that's not true. I understand that you and your family are experiencing a tough time right now and I want to help ensure that you guys are put back on track."

'_You don't understand, Arnold. I don't want things to return back to the way they were before._ _My family has never been on track.' _Helga thought. She changed the subject.

"Hey, aren't you going to show us to our rooms or something? I thought you were gramps's little helper." Helga asked.

"Well, I guess I can show you the two rooms we have left, but I'll need to get the keys from grandpa." He stated.

"Whatever, it's not like I have anything better to do anyways…" Helga said, sitting down on one of the beeper boxes with a bored expression.

Instead of leaving immediately to find his grandpa, Arnold did something she wasn't expecting. He gave her his half-lidded smile and cast a wink in her direction. Helga blushed.

"Wait here. I'll be back soon," He responded, before walking back up the stairs.

"Uh, yeah, I'll just be right here…waiting…" She replied, flustered. _'Ok, what the heck was that all about?' _she thought in confusion. She looked over to see if anyone noticed the odd way she was acting. Miriam was passed out on the floor, cradling her blender and Olga was nowhere to be found.

All clear.

She pulled out her locket from her jumper and began to monologue, "Oh Arnold, football headed love of my dreams, why must you tease me by granting me a chance to see that beautiful smile I have fallen in love with, only so that I will yearn to see it that much more? And those yummy half-lidded enchanting green eyes…oh darling! I am pudding against that wonderful gaze!" She gave a love-sick sigh before putting her locket back in her jumper.

"BABY SISTER!" She heard Olga's voice shout from the kitchen.

"OH BABY SIS-!"

"Crimeny Olga! Would it kill you to address me by my actual name for once instead of that ridiculous pet name that I've told you a thousand times not to call me?!" Helga cried out, heading over to the kitchen.

When she walked in she spotted Olga facing the window as she washed the remaining dishes in the sink.

"Oh Helga, you silly! It's not a pet name. It's just that I love my baby sister so much that it makes me want to proclaim the bond we share to the whole world." Olga replied. She put the last of the dishes in the cupboard with the other plates. She sighed happily. "There. All done." With that, she turned around and faced her sister.

"You know, baby sister, despite all those horrible things that happened today what with the electrical fire burning down the house and us having to move elsewhere, in some strange way, I believe that this all turned out for the better. For a while, I was afraid that the bond between us was drifting further apart each day, but now, because of the fire, I feel that we will finally be able to see beyond our differences and become closer as siblings." Olga said with a hopeful look in her eyes.

Helga, however, wasn't so convinced. "So, let me get this straight. You think that just because Bob was clumsy enough to start a fire that almost killed me and forced us to live like hobos that somehow everything's going to change and things will be all peachy from now on between you and me."

"I know it sounds strange, Helga, but with a little fait—" Olga started, but Helga continued.

"—and I suppose you think that we can just spend hours of quality time bawling away in each other's arms, talking about each other's 'feelings' in the hopes that by some miracle a mysterious connection will be made between you and me so that I will act like the sister you always wanted and we all can live happily ever after praising you. Huh Olga?" Helga answered.

"Well, it depends on how you look at it. As I always say, you can choose to see things with the glass half-full or the glass half-empty." Olga replied.

"Well, big sis, I've got some words of advice for you. I'm. Not. Like. You. I don't view things through rose-colored lenses like you do and I don't think that there has ever been any bond between us, nor do I think there will ever _be_ a bond between us. I am not just some paper clip that you can bend and shape to turn it into something that's presentable for you to relate to you. I'm _Helga_, not you, not Bob, not Miriam. Just me. So quit trying to act like things are going to work between us because they're _not_. We have a room together and that's it. We tolerate each other because we have to. Nothing more. Got it?" Helga explained. Tears formed in Olga's eyes. "But where is all this coming from, baby sis? I only wanted us to…I thought we could…" Olga couldn't continue. She broke down in tears. "Excuse me." She sniffled, running out of the kitchen crying. For some reason, Helga couldn't shake the guilt that came shortly after seeing her sister's reaction. Truth be told, she knew her sister was just trying her best to be a good sister, but Helga knew that just clinging onto the hope that their relationship would change would be only making matters worse. Repairing their relationship was like trying to repair broken glass. The more Olga tried to put the broken pieces of their relationship back together, the more pain or wounds she sustained from those same broken pieces coming back to haunt her.

The feeling of guilt increased when Helga looked down and discovered the reason why her sister had called her inside the kitchen. On the floor was a small rectangular gift box labeled from 'Olga' to 'Baby Sis'. She hesitantly picked up the small trinket and slowly unwrapped the present. Inside the box, she found a small note:

Dear Helga:

I noticed that cute little pink bow of yours was a little charred from the fire today so I thought a new one would be fitting of my baby sis.

Love always,

Olga

xoxoxo

Helga looked under the letter and found a pink satin bow resting neatly on top of foam. She shook her head. _'She sure knows how to send a person on a guilt trip…' _She thought. She hated herself for saying such horrible words to Olga.

"Olga, wait up!" She yelled, running after her sister.

* * *

><p>…<p>

"For crying out loud, gramps! Who on earth needs a bathroom for an office?!" Bob asked, shielding his eyes.

"Well, that would be me. Could you hand me my important papers, please?" Phil said on the toilet.

Bob rolled his eyes before starting to reach for the lease agreement until Phil's voice stopped him.

"No, no! My _other _important papers!" He said, pointing to a roll of toilet tissue.

"You've got to be kidding me…how long is this going to take, gramps?!"

"That depends. How long is it going to take you to hand me my important papers?"

"Oh, for the love of…here. Just take it." Bob said, handing the roll off to Phil. Upon seeing Phil doing something he wished he could un-see, Bob shielded his eyes immediately.

"Aww…come on, you aren't really—aww….okay, I get the picture, gramps. You want to be alone with your paperwork. Sheesh!" Bob complained, walking out the door and shutting it behind him.

A few minutes later, the door opened, revealing Phil carrying out a stack of papers along with a newspaper. Flushing noises could be heard in the background.

"Ahhh…what a relief when those weasels finally pop out of ya, eh Bob?" Phil said.

"I'm just going to pretend I didn't hear that. That was more of you then I ever wanted to see." Bob cringed at the memory.

"Well, if you had just been a little more patient and waited outside in the first place, maybe you wouldn't have had to have seen what goes on in my office." Phil responded. "Anyways, the paperwork's all finished. You all can move into your rooms right away."

"Hey Grandpa," A young blonde boy greeted casually.

"Ah, Arnold. Just the man I wanted to see. Would you have the honor of escorting Mr. Pataki and his motley crew to their rooms, please?" Phil said, already handing off the keys to Arnold.

"Actually, grandpa. That's just what I came here to see you about." Arnold replied.

"Then it's all settled. Go on, Shortman. It's two to a room. Mr. & Mrs. Pataki and your little friend and her sister. Afterwards, you can provide me with the status report and that will be all for tonight." Phil answered.

"I'm on it." He responded before turning to Bob. "Mr. Pataki, can you please wait here while I get everyone else to join us upstairs?"

"Just make it quick or I'll charge you for wasting my valuable time. Time is money, Arnie." Bob said seriously.

"Um, it's _Arnold _and right, I won't be long." Arnold said, before descending the staircase.

* * *

><p>"Crimeny! Where is she? This place is a lot larger than I had anticipated. I feel like I need a freakin' map!" Helga said, looking around anxiously for any signs of her sister.<p>

Suddenly, she heard muffled sniffles in the back corner of the room. When she went to check it out, she found her sister huddled in a corner with her back facing Helga. A feeling of dread came over Helga. She hated these types of situations. She was never very good at cheering people up. Whenever she tried, she always came off kind of brash and uncaring so she tried her best to avoid them. However, this was her sister and she remembered what Arnold had said about sisters being there for one another, no matter what, and she also had to take a little accountability in creating this situation for herself.

She took a deep breath. _'Ok, Helga, ol' girl. You can do this. Just remember to be gentle and apologize. It'll all be over soon.'_

But as she slowly approached Olga, she started having second thoughts. _'She's just going to cry again and annoy the crap out of me. Besides, it's not like I just won't end up making things worse.' _

However, despite her doubts, she spoke, making her sister painfully aware that someone else was in the room.

"Olga, I, uh, need to talk to you." Helga started.

Olga turned around, revealing her puffy eyes and black mascara cascading down both sides of her face.

"Oh, it's you. What do you want?" Her sister responded.

Helga was a little taken aback by her sister's new attitude, but she continued to press on. "Well, I, uh, just wanted to say that I'm sorry for saying the things that I said. Olga, you're not a bad sister, I know that. It's just that I get tired of you breathing down my neck all the time and I just need some space."

It was silent for a moment before her sister finally spoke.

"You know, I thought a lot about what you said earlier, Helga." She began.

"Y-you did?" Helga questioned, unsure of what to make of her statement.

She nodded her head. "I did and I realized that all of the things you said about me were true. You must have thought that I was overbearing the way I always insisted that we spend time together and bond as siblings."

"Oh, don't say that, Olga. It wasn't that I didn't like spending time with you because to tell you the truth, it was sort of nice having someone around that paid attention to me. It was the 24/7 part that annoyed me." Helga said, rubbing the back of her neck shyly.

Olga got on her knees and took Helga's hands into hers. "Baby si—I mean, Helga—can you ever find it in that _wittle_ heart of yours to forgive me? I promise to never invade your space again and to be there only when you need me."

Helga gave a small smile. "Of course I forgive you, Olga. I mean, what are sisters for? But you don't have to promise me anything. Let's face it. We're going to get on each other's nerves from time to time, but that's to be expected. No one else shares the bond that we have—as sisters. I'm sorry I didn't realize that sooner." She said.

Olga pulled her in for a tight hug with teary eyes, but unlike other times, Helga embraced her sister back. They remained like that for just a few moments before they both released from each other's grasps.

Olga wiped her eyes, now smiling. "You want to know the worst thing about pretending like everything's perfect? Losing sight of what's really important. And that's you, baby sis. However, there's just one teensy thing that you were wrong about."

That caught her attention. Helga crossed her arms against her chest. "Oh yeah? What 'one teensy thing' did I miss?" She asked, skeptically.

"You were always the perfect sister to me. More perfect than I could have ever asked for." Olga answered, tapping one finger on Helga's nose.

Helga scoffed. "Right, I'm just a regular Olga jr. ready to take on any good deeds you throw at me."

Olga giggled. "No, silly. I meant, I love you just the way you are," She said, but giggled some more upon seeing Helga's confused face. "You know, I wasn't always the perfect sister you think I am."

"Oh sure, and I suppose you're going to tell me that Bob's pork rinds are a part of every nutritious breakfast." Helga said, obviously not buying it.

Olga feigned a gasping noise. "You mean they're not?" She asked, laughing.

Helga joined in laughing. "Not unless you count sleepwalking on the list of breakfast items…" She joked.

Olga laughed at that, but was eventually able to regain her bearings shortly afterwards. "But seriously, baby sis, I used to be a very lonely girl when I was your age."

"Lonely? You?! Do tell." came Helga's sarcastic reply.

Olga nodded her head. "Uh-huh. It's true. Before you were born, I spent a lot of my time on my own. You see, daddy wasn't very happy about the idea of a daughter. He always wanted a son to carry the Pataki name. So, anytime he looked at me, he always had a look of disgust on his face like I was a mistake. It hurt me every time. I felt so unloved." She recalled sadly.

"What about mom?" Helga asked, now intrigued with the sudden turn of events.

"I know that mommy was very happy to have me, but daddy just didn't understand. He blamed my existence on mommy and called her a failure as a Pataki wife. Mommy became very unhappy and that's when…" Olga stopped; her eyes began to water at the memory.

"Let me guess, she binged on her 'smoothies', right?" Helga responded, knowingly.

Olga nodded. "I was alone and had no one to take care of me. Daddy was always yelling at mommy and mommy was always too drained to do anything about it. It was like she had given up. I witnessed her once bright and exuberant eyes turn into listless, dull eyes. One night, I remember hearing daddy threatening to file for divorce if mommy didn't get her act together. I remember spending hours crying in my room after that. I was afraid that my family would split apart, all because of me." Olga replied.

"So, what happened after that? How did you manage to bring everyone together?" Helga asked. _'All this time, I thought I was suffering, but maybe…maybe there was someone suffering just as much as me.' _She thought, sadly.

Olga wiped her eyes. "I decided to be the child that daddy wanted. I studied hard in school, entered into as many extracurriculars and competitions, striving to be the best every time. And guess what? I became the best academically-gifted, piano concerto, award-winning Pataki actress around. Daddy and Mommy were so proud. It brought the family back together again. So I thought that all I had to do was continue always being the best and I would never be so alone again." Olga finished cheerfully.

"Is that why you cry at the drop of a hat?" Helga mocked.

"I…Well, remember the day you changed one of my grades to a B+?" Olga asked.

"Who doesn't?" She shrugged.

"Well, during that time, all I could think about was the loneliness I felt before I decided to be a little wind-up doll for mommy and daddy. I thought that I had let daddy down by that less than perfect grade."

"But that's silly, Olga! You can't actually believe that Bob and Miriam will stop loving you just because you made one mistake. I mean, look at them. They practically worship the ground you walk on." Helga countered.

"I don't know why, but every time I think about making a mistake, I cringe at the thought. I don't know what I would do if that were to happen. I just can't bear the thought, Helga." Olga replied.

"Yeah, well, thanks to you I don't have to walk around being 'little miss perfect' all the time. But sometimes, I feel like…oh forget it. You wouldn't understand." Helga said, immediately changing her mind.

"What, baby sis? What? You can tell me. I promise to keep this between you and me." Olga responded eagerly.

"I…" She cautiously started, unsure about whether to continue. Upon seeing her sister's pleading face, she relented. "I don't know. I guess I feel a bit overshadowed because all mom and dad seem to care about is you." She admitted.

"Don't be silly, Baby sis. They would neve—" She coaxed, but Helga cut in.

"See! This is exactly what I'm talking about! You don't know what it feels like to be constantly treated like you don't exist. You don't know how it feels to be starving for days without food and having to be creative and eat cereal for several weeks because Miriam is too wasted to make anything. You don't know what it's like to have your own dad not even remember your own name and even worse, call it by your own sister's name. You don't even know what it's like to have to walk to school every day since preschool because your parent's don't care enough to drive you. And it's not like I can wave a paper in front of them and yell, 'Hey! I made an A on my math test today!' and you want to know why?"

Before Olga could answer, Helga answered for her. "Because every day I'm constantly reminded how much better you are than me with your awards and because you were able to make ten consecutive A+'s in just one week. And when you're finally home, not only do I have to hear Bob and Miriam praise you on all your achievements, that's all that seems to come out of your mouth as well. Crimeny! I feel like I'm surrounded!" Helga shouted, huffing and puffing.

It was silent for a moment before Olga spoke. "Baby sister, I am so sorry. I never knew. After you were born, I thought I could protect you from the loneliness I felt by giving you all the attention mommy and daddy never gave me just by spending more time with you, but I never meant for my own need to feel loved would cause your unhappiness." Olga stated.

"It's okay, Olga, I'm used to it by now. I'll manage, but I just wanted you to know." Helga said.

"No, Helga, it's not okay. From now on, I'll try to be more conscientious of your achievements than my own." Olga said, pulling her in for another hug.

"Yeah, yeah, just don't go overboard with it. Sometimes I just need my space." Helga replied, annoyed, yet smiling.

They froze when they heard a throat clear itself in the background. They turned to see a familiar blonde haired boy standing in the doorway.

"I, uh, sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but grandpa said that he has all the rooms ready for you guys." He said.

"Geez, football head. You couldn't have picked a better timing. I think Olga here was just attempting to smother me to death." She said, breaking away from her sister. However, she cast a wink in her direction causing Olga to understand that she was joking.

"Oh, in that case, maybe I should stand outside a few more minutes." Arnold replied, grinning.

"So you're her partner in crime, huh? What's the world coming to when two saints have gone bad?" Helga exclaimed dramatically as she pinched his arm.

"Ow!" Arnold yelped, rubbing his recently pinched arm. "What was that for?!"

"Oh, sorry, football head. I had to make sure that was the real you instead of an evil clone. Yep, it's you, alright. An evil clone wouldn't be so weak." Helga explained.

"Gee, thanks…" Arnold replied in annoyance.

Watching the scene of events, Olga giggled to herself. "Thank you very much, Arnold! We appreciate that you have been so kind to show us to our rooms." she said, standing up.

"No problem." Arnold responded.

'_Suck up…' _Helga thought, rolling her eyes.

Together, the three walked out of the dining room and into the hallway where Miriam was still passed out.

* * *

><p>...<p>

"Is she going to be alright?" Arnold asked, looking down at the woman sleeping on the floor clutching her blender.

"Who? Miriam? Yeah, she's fine. Happens all the time." Helga said, with a carefree attitude.

"Glad to see you seem to be taking this so well," He responded.

"Mommy!" Olga cried, kneeling down beside the sleeping woman. Arnold watched as Olga attempted to wake up the slumbering woman.

"Huh? Wha? Where am I?" The woman replied drunkenly.

Arnold let out a sigh of relief. She was going to be okay after all.

"Are you going to stand there gawking at her all day or are you going to help me carry _Bob's _luggage up the stairs?" Helga asked suddenly, already heaving a box of Bob's beepers.

"Huh? Oh. Right." He answered, grabbing the other box of Bob's beepers.

"Sheesh, Arnoldo. Some host you turned out to be." She mocked.

'_Some guest she turned out to be…' _he thought to himself.

"Mommy, Arnold here has been kind enough to show us to our rooms. Isn't that great?" Olga asked.

"Oh, uh huh, that's nice dear…have you seen my blender around anywhere?" Miriam questioned.

Olga giggled. "Why, it's in your hands silly!" She exclaimed.

Miriam immediately looked in her hands and saw her blender. "Oh, right… excuse me, I'm just going to go brew up a quick smoothie in the kitchen." She replied, already beginning to stand up to head in that direction.

"Oh brother, Miriam. Don't you think you've had enough of your 'smoothies' for one day?" Helga asked.

"Helga's right, mommy. You must be tired after everything that happened today. You need rest and this young man has been waiting here patiently to show us to our rooms." Olga tried to persuade her mother.

"Oh, it won't take long. I just need a glass to get me by. I have such a headache." Miriam responded tiredly, holding her head.

"It's not nice to keep this kind boy waiting, mommy. Don't you think you should wait till after you get your things settled, hm?" Olga chastised.

"Don't bother trying to convince her, Olga. This could take all day if you allow it. It's obvious that nothing's coming between Miriam and her smoothies so don't waste your breath." Helga said, rolling her eyes. "We haven't got all day."

"But—" Olga tried to protest.

"It's okay. I can show Mrs. Pataki where things are in the kitchen. It should only take a minute and afterwards, I can help you two carry all these boxes to your rooms." Arnold answered.

"Really?!" Olga exclaimed. "Oh, Arnold, you sweet, sweet boy! Now I can see why my baby sister likes you so much."

"Huh?!" Helga squeaked in surprise. "Y-you've got it all wrong, Olga. Let me lay it in thick. I do _not _like Arnold. You've got to be crazy to like that football headed freak!"

'_Yeah, crazy about football heads…' _she thought automatically.

Arnold didn't fail to catch that little insult that Helga threw in there, but opted to ignore it and chalk it off to Helga being Helga. "Helga and I are just...friends. We go to the same school and hang around the same group of friends, but that's pretty much it." He explained.

Helga couldn't help but feel a little hurt by the last part of Arnold's comment. _' "Pretty much it"? I mean, it's not like I expected to be among his first choice of girls that he'd go out with, but I thought that maybe, maybe he thought a little more of me after him rescuing me and all…' _she thought. She sighed. '_I should have known…Arnold was just doing his do-gooder act as always. Why would I think that he would treat me any different than any other person trapped in a burning building on a Saturday?' _A voice broke her thoughts.

"…Helga?" Olga asked, worriedly.

"Huh?" She questioned, snapping out of her daze.

"I was asking your opinion on whether you think it would be a good idea to write a 'thank you' card out to Arnold and his grandfather for being such great hosts." Olga repeated.

"Uh, yeah, Olga. Sounds great," Helga answered, her mind elsewhere. She looked around and noticed Arnold and Miriam were gone now. She assumed that they had gone into the kitchen so Arnold could basically give Miriam permission to raid their kitchen.

A few moments later, Arnold returned with a tired expression. It was getting late. He knew it and they knew it. The clock showed after 1am already. He looked ready to hurry this shindig along so that he could hit the sack soon.

"Alright, you two. Ready to head upstairs? Mr. Pataki is probably tired of waiting by now." Arnold asked, a little too eagerly.

"You've got that right, bucko. I'm surprised he hasn't come storming down the stairs demanding to know what the hold up is and when he came get to be with his stuff since apparently, that's all he seems to care about lately." Helga agreed.

"Oh, you know how Daddy gets!" Olga laughed. "Thanks again for all your help, Arnold." She said.

"Oh, it's not a problem. I'm always available if you need me." He responded, heaving a box of Bob's beepers.

Helga followed suit, carrying another one of Bob's heavy beeper boxes with Olga not too far along carrying a bag of Bob's clothes. They each began their ascent up the staircase.

"Crimeny! What's taking that kid so damn long?!" Bob said, anxiously pacing the hallway outside the bathroom.

"Well, I'd wish the Shortman would hurry up soon so that I don't have to listen to any more of your complaints…" Phil remarked.

"Hey! You want to make something of it, old man?!" Bob threatened, walking up close to where he was towering over the elderly man.

Phil stood his ground, glaring up into the taller man's eyes. "Who are you calling an old man?"

"Hard of hearing now?" Bob mocked. The two were chest to chest now.

"Hey, grandpa. We're back!" Arnold said, coming to the last stair. He froze when he saw Phil and Bob just about to go toe-to-toe with each other. They didn't seem to notice that he was there.

Helga walked past Arnold and put down the box she was carrying.

"ALRIGHT, BREAK IT UP!" She shouted, getting in between Bob and Phil and pushing them apart. "Geez, we haven't even been gone for ten minutes and already you guys at each other's throats." Helga said, putting her hands on her hips.

Arnold just gaped at Helga's forcefulness.

"Daddy, please. No more fighting. These people have given us way too much already." Olga defended, standing in between Phil and Bob.

Bob immediately turned his attention to the three people standing before him, but not before casting one last's glare in Phil's direction. In response, Phil waved both of his hands near his ears and stuck his tongue out at Bob.

"So the cavalry's arrived. Well, it's about time. Where the hell have you been? And where's Miriam?" Bob asked, eyeing the group.

"Doi! She's downstairs binging on her favorite drinks again. What else?" came Helga's crude response.

"Again?! Oh Miriam, for the love of—!" He exclaimed, putting a hand to his forehead. He turned to Arnold. "Look, kid. I'm tired and I'm ready to hit the sack. Could we please just move this along already?" He asked.

"Yes, sir. It's right this way." He said, motioning for everyone to follow him.

"And as for you," Bob started, pointing a finger at Phil. "This isn't over. Not by a long shot. Ya got that?"

Phil closed one eye, glaring angrily at the man. "Oh foey! You don't scare me. This fight was over long before it started." He responded.

"_Grandpa…_" Arnold chastised, giving his grandfather a look.

"Sorry, Shortman, but sometimes you just gotta learn how to stand up to bullies like Big Bob." He answered, walking in stride past him and right into the bathroom, shutting the door.

Helga rolled her eyes. "Some family you got here, paste-for-brains." She said, picking up her box.

"Yeah, well. I could say the same about yours…" He whispered, not wanting to provoke Helga's father any further.

"You got me there." She replied, as they walked down the hallway to their rooms.

* * *

><p>In the kitchen, Miriam was busy looking in the fridge for ingredients to put in her smoothie. "Let's see…hot sauce. Check. Milk. check. Bananas and strawberries. Check, check. Okay, now where's that whiskey? Come on, it's bound to be here somewhere…." She said, looking around earnestly for the missing ingredient to her concoction. "Come on, I'm not giving up. Where are you…?" She said, determinedly. She looked around some more until she spotted a whiskey bottle in the bottle shelf of the fridge.<p>

"Aha! There you are!" She exclaimed, removing the container from the shelf. She was in the process of opening the bottle when a voice cut in.

"Hey! What gives? Why are you snooping around in grandpa's fridge?!" Oskar exclaimed.

Startled, Miriam accidentally dropped the bottle, causing fragments of the whiskey glass along with its contents to splatter across the floor.

She instantly turned around with a horrified look in her eyes. "I…uh…was just getting a bottle of whiskey for the landlord, " She lied.

"Nice try, I know what you are. You're a thief trying to steal all of grandpa's food and now I'm going to tell the whole house what you did." He accused, pointing a finger at her.

However, another voice cut in. "Alright, Kokoshka, you no good thieving oaf! The jig is up. I know it's been you who's been stealing all the chicken in the fridge every night." Ernie said, appearing in the doorway.

"Ah, Ernie, just the man I wanted to see. I caught your thief trying to steal Grandpa's food ehehehe." He said.

"What are you talking abou—" He froze, catching sight of the other person in the room. "Oh, I remember you!" He exclaimed. "You're that crazy lady I saw on TV who tried to show all those firemen how to do their job."

He considered for a moment. "And you know…come to think of it, Susie's been going on and on about you ever since that beach trip we took last spring. She'll be happy to know that you're here. So, what brings you here anyways?" He asked, scratching his head.

"Hey! Where's my reward I caught your thief!" Oskar argued.

"Clam it, Kokoshka. I'll deal with you later." Ernie replied, waving him off.

"Err, don't mind him. He's being a loser as always." He said to Miriam. "So, where were we again?"

"No, no, you've got it all wrong. I'm a good guy. I helped you, see? Ehehehehe." Oskar defended.

But Ernie hushed him. "Shh! Quiet, you!" He said.

Miriam panicked. How was she to explain the broken whiskey bottle on the floor in front of her? She could always blame it on Oskar,, but that would just make matters worse and she was stressed out enough already. She sighed. She had to think of something fast or it would be back to another week of community service and A.A. meetings for her…again.

However, she didn't have to think for long because another voice sounded through the hallway leading to the kitchen.

Susie appeared in the doorway. "I thought I'd find you in here! Oskar, you aren't stealing food from that fridge again, are you?!" Susie chastised.

"Aha! So it _was_ you!" Ernie exclaimed angrily. "Wait 'til I get my hands on you, you little—oh and Susie, you've got a visitor here for you. It's Miriam." He pointed casually to the woman standing in front of the fridge behind him.

"What's that? Miriam? As in, Miriam Pataki?!" Susie replied in shock. She looked over at where Ernie was pointing and saw the woman in question standing awkwardly behind him. She rushed over and gave the woman a bear hug.

"Oh, it _is_ you! It's so great to see you! How have you been?! It's been ages since we last took those dancing lessons together over at the beach." She said, smiling brightly at her long lost friend.

"Err, sorry to interrupt you girls' reunion, but pardon while I go strangle your thieving husband," He said, his hands making a wringing motion as he inched towards Oskar.

"Ernie, old pal. You forgive me. We're buddies, remember eheheheh?" Oskar said as he backed away slowly.

"No, we are not buddies and the day your name and mine are used in the same sentence will be when pigs fly!" Ernie shouted, trying to get a hold of the Czechoslovakian man.

Oskar made a run for it out of the kitchen with Ernie tailing him.

Miriam and Susie paid them no mind. "We've got much to talk about. Hey, since Oskar's busy right now, why don't the two of us head up to my room so that we can talk about this more over some tea. You aren't busy, are you? I know it's kind of late for you to be out like this, but since you're here I figured 'why waste a perfectly good chance to talk to a good friend.'" Susie explained. Then, her eyes caught sight of the mess on the floor. "Oh! What happened here? Oskar, didn't make a mess again, did he," Not even waiting for a response, she continued. "I've got an idea! Since the two of us are going to be hanging out for a while anyways. Why don't we both go ahead and clean up this mess together. It'll be great because we'll be helping Arnold's family out and get a chance to catch up at the same time." She offered.

"I….I guess we can do that," Miriam responded, wiping her eyes tiredly.

"Oh, you poor dear! I'm sorry! You must be tired! I'll tell you what. Why don't you go and rest in that chair for a bit while I clean up the mess." She suggested.

Miriam hesitated, feeling a twinge of guilt for having Susie do all the work cleaning up the mess that she made.

As if reading her mind, Susie responded. "Oh, it'll be fine. Don't worry. I do this all the time. I've gotten a lot of practice cleaning up all of Oskar's messes and let me tell you, they are no laughing matter." She laughed.

Miriam relented and made herself comfortable by sitting in one of the stools near the kitchen table.

True to her word, Susie picked up and mop and began mopping up the mess on the floor, making sure to sweep up any glass fragments in the process.

"Let's see…where should I begin…?" Susie started.

* * *

><p>Upstairs, Olga and Helga had just gotten settled into their rooms.<p>

"Isn't this wonderful, baby sis? We get to share a room together!" Olga exclaimed happily. She reached out to hug Helga, but Helga blocked her.

"Up, Up, Up…space! Remember what we talked about?" She replied, keeping her distance.

"Of course, baby sis. How could I ever forget?" Olga said, walking back to over to her bed that Helga helped move across the room.

Helga nodded her head in approval. "There you go. If you keep that up, you and I will get along just fine. You have your space and I have mine." She said, kicking back on her bed located on the far side of the room. She suddenly felt uncomfortable. She reached into her shirt and casually pulled out the shoe she had been hiding.

Olga gasped. "Oh! Is that what was in your shirt all this time, baby sis? You know, I had my suspicions you might have been hiding something. But there's only one shoe!"

"Shh! Not so loud!" Helga hushed her. "Don't you think I know that?" She asked. "Bob's not the only one who managed to save a few things from the fire, okay?" She carefully placed the shoe along the side of her bed.

* * *

><p>Back on the other end of the hallway, Arnold and Bob had just arrived in what would be Mr. and Mrs. Pataki's room. Arnold set Bob's beeper box down on the floor on the bed.<p>

"Here we are, Mr. Pataki. This is where you and Mrs. Pataki will sleep." Arnold said, handing Bob the keys. He waited for a few moments for a sign of gratitude or acknowledgement from Bob.

"Well? The heck are you standing around here for, kid? Beat it." Bob replied.

Arnold sighed, understanding that waiting was a lost cause. "Right…" He said, "Well, if you need anythin—" He started, but was cut off.

"I better _not_ be anything or I'll be taking my money back. Capiche?" Bob interjected. "Now amscray, Archibald or I'll reconsider my decision to stay in this dump!" He said, slamming the door in his face.

He groaned. "It's _Arnold_…" He corrected.

"Whatever!" He heard Bob's voice through the door.

'_He's even worse than Helga when she's having a bad day…' _ He thought, walking away in frustration. He headed towards his grandfather's private "office".

* * *

><p>In the kitchen, Miriam had been listening attentively to Susie talk about her life with Oskar.<p>

"Oh, you wouldn't believe how needy Oskar can get sometimes. It's always, 'Susie, do this. Susie, do that.' I never really have any time to myself lately because Oskar constantly wants someone to be at his beck and call. And he never seems to appreciate what I do for him. Sometimes it makes me question why I even married him. It's just…he used to be so sweet back when we were first married. Why, I even remember a time where he went out of his way to open the door for me right as I was going to take the trash out." She recounted in a daze.

Her attitude quickly changed. "But now, he's changed. On Valentine's Day, he had the nerve to offer me roses with the tag still on them while we were in the grocery store, but when we were in line to pay for them along with our groceries, he suddenly claimed that he had forgotten his wallet back at home and that he'd pay me back later. Ooh…that Oskar!" She recounted. "Just thinking about it makes me boil. And come to think of it, he never did pay me back either!'

"Mmhm…Bob's the same way. That man's just never happy…" Miriam agreed. "You know, to this day, I regret not taking my father's advice about staying away from Bob Pataki. I am so happy that at least one person understands me. Us women have to stick together."

"That's right!" Susie responded.

"Susie…I'm thirsty. Get me a yahoo. All that running from Ernie wore me out." Came Oskar's voice.

"Oskar, I'm a little busy at the moment. Do you mind getting your own yahoo?" Susie asked nicely.

"But Susie…I'm so tired. I don't think I have the strength to lift a finger. Could you get it for me?" Oskar complained from the couch in the living room.

Susie sighed, looking to Miriam. "Will you excuse me for a moment?" She asked, getting up from her seat to get a yahoo from the fridge.

"Susie…" Oskar whined.

"Coming Oskar!" she called out. She exited the kitchen, leaving Miriam alone to her thoughts. She contemplated if she would someday turn out like Susie if she continued to stay with Bob.

"Miriam!" she heard Bob's voice call suddenly. He appeared in the kitchen doorway.

"Miriam! I've been looking all over for you. What the heck are you doing sitting here in the kitchen?" He questioned. "Stop fooling around and help me find the darn remote, Miriam." He ordered.

"Right, B…" She answered tiredly. She understood that there was no point in arguing with Bob. Every protest she made only seemed to make him angrier. Maybe she could just learn to grin and bear it. After all, she was dead inside already.

"Now, that's more like it…." Bob said as Miriam began to head out of the kitchen. However, as she was leaving the kitchen she ran into Susie.

"Miriam, where are you going? We weren't through with our conversation."

"That conversation's going to have to wait. Miriam's helping me now." Bob proclaimed. He pulled Miriam along. "Come on, Miriam, that remote's not going to find itself." He said. But Susie didn't budge.

"Now wait just a second here. Why is it that _you_ couldn't just look for the remote on your own instead of asking Miriam to do it for you? She was already busy with something," She countered.

"Last time I checked, Miriam was in the kitchen sitting on her butt doing nothing and you weren't even there." Bob responded in annoyance.

"I was getting something for Oskar. I told Miriam that I would be back soon so we could continue with our discussion."

"Boo hoo! You're angry because I took you're away you're only friend." Bob teased.

"All I'm saying is that Miriam needs to make her own decisions without you dictating everything in her life."

That did it. "Now _you _listen here! You better not be talking about the way I run things in my family. Miriam goes with me and that's that." He said, trying to shove past her, but Susie stood her ground.

"She doesn't have to go anywhere with you. You don't control her." Susie argued. "Go on. Tell him, Miriam. Tell him just what you told me!" She said, looking to Miriam.

"Miriam knows where she stands! She doesn't need someone like you to tell her any different. Tell her, Miriam so she can get out of our hairs." Bob shouted.

Miriam was conflicted. It's true that for once in a very long time; she had someone else that could relate to the frustration she was feeling inside. She wanted to stand up for herself and relive that happy moment with Susie at the beach again and feel the same youthful vigor she felt years ago before meeting Bob. But, at the same time, she knew that Bob truly depended on her.

She couldn't just leave him all alone. It would not only anger him, it would crush him at the same time because he would feel as if she betrayed him. However, she knew that if she went along with him willy-nilly, she may never have this chance to do what she wanted. She doubted Susie would forgive her or even understand a decision to go with Bob. She had to decide quickly. Stay with Bob and face a reoccurrence of the same misery she felt every day or throw caution to the wind by going with Susie and be prepared to face Bob's wrath?

She looked to Bob and Susie watching her expectantly. She turned to Bob.

"B, honey, I'm going to go talk with Susie for a while. I should be back in a few hours. Do you think you'll be okay on your own for a bit?" She asked, sweetly.

Bob was flabbergasted. "But…but…Miriam! What the hell am I supposed to do about the remote?!" He shouted.

"Oh, I'm sure that little boy Archie would be happy to help…" She answered.

"That kid?! I don't want to ask some kid to help me! Miriam, I need you he—"

Miriam quickly gave him a small peck on the cheek. "Oh, well, I'm sure you'll find a way, B…take care, honey." She responded, beginning to walk away.

"For cripes sake, Miriam! I can't believe you're siding with _her_ of all people!" He exclaimed, casting a scouring look at Susie.

"Oh, relax, B…I'll be back before you know it." She said, continuing on her way with Susie.

"Miriam, don't you walk away from me….Miriam! MIRIAM!" He called after her, but she was already gone. "How am I supposed to watch the game now?"

He thought for a moment. "I guess I could ask for the girls help…"He reflected, walking toward Helga and Olga's bedroom.

* * *

><p>...<p>

"So let me get this straight. You mosey on into our bedroom at 2 in the freakin' morning to ask me to find a stupid remote that's probably been right under your nose all this time, but you couldn't take lousy 2 seconds to get off your lazy butt and look for it yourself?' Helga explained.

'_Typical Bob expecting everyone to drop everything just to wait hand and foot on his royal highness. I guess that's why he dubs himself the Beeper King…' _She thought with an eye roll.

"Hey! Hey! Hey! Watch your tone, little missy! Don't forget who you're speaking to. I'm your father and I expect you to do as say when I say. Now march."

"Yeah, about that, _dad_. Why is it that you don't ask your precious _Olga _to do this task for you? I bet if you ask her, she'd prance right on over with her perfect self and find the remote for you in no time flat."

"Yeah…speaking of Olga, where is the girl anyway?" Bob asked, completing ignoring her question.

"In the shower. Like normal people do before they're about to go to bed." She answered.

"Hmph. Well, it's getting late anyways. I wouldn't want to bother her, especially if she's planning on making my breakfast in the morning with the other boarders." He noted, scratching his head.

She gaped. _'What…did he just—'_

"Excuse me?! It's not okay to disturb Olga when it's getting late, but it's perfectly fine to just barge into this room and disturb me when I could've been sleeping?! Crimeny! What kind of justice system are you running here?!" Helga exclaimed.

Just as Bob was about to retort, Olga came bursting into the room, dripping wet with a towel wrapped around her hair and body.

"Oh, baby sister~" Olga sang, oblivious to another person in the room. "I just came up with the most fabulous idea. Why don't we watch the French classic, 'The Phantom of the Opera?' together?"

"You mean that sappy play about a guy who wears a mask all the time to hide the gross half of his face? Oh, I remember that one. It's lame that they never actually show the guy's face. Would've made for a much better movie, if you ask me…" Helga recounted thoughtfully. She snapped out of her brief reverie and continued, "Anyways, if you even think I'm going to sit through a 3-hour film with nothing but people singing when I could be in my bed getting some shut-eye, then you've got another thing coming."

"While I do disagree with your general summarization of the context of the film, baby sis, you'll be happy to know that I came prepared for a situation just like this." She replied, digging around through a beeper bag that had yet to be returned to Bob. She pulled out a black VHS tape with tiny words labeled on the front.

"Ta-da!" She exclaimed. "Here in my hands is Bennington College's feature film, _Carmen_, starring award-winning actress, Olga Pataki as Carmen!" She giggled.

"No way! Don't even think abo—"

"No kidding!" Bob interjected suddenly. "A Pataki as a starring character…" He stated, thoughtfully. Then he pounded a sideways fist into his other hand in realization. "Hey! Why don't we save that film for all the boarders to watch tomorrow?!" He suggested, enthusiastically.

"That's a splendid idea, daddy! It will be the most wonderful present to thank the landlord for allowing us to stay here in the midst of such horrible times…" Olga replied, excitedly.

"Heh-heh. I'd love to see that old bag's face when he gets a load of this." Bob remarked, smiling deviously.

"Ugh. I've got to get out of here…" Helga said, putting a hand to her forehead.

"What do you think, baby sis? Isn't this just wonderful news?" Olga asked, looking to the girl in question.

"You two have fun promoting that video of yours. I, on the other hand, think I'll be busy that night," Helga answered, beginning to walk out the door.

"Where are you going, baby sis?" Olga asked, worriedly.

"Yeah, what about finding my remote?" Bob insisted.

Helga turned around to give them her last hoorah. "I'm going someplace where I can have some peace and quiet without listening to you two yammer on about something I don't care to hear right now." She said, before continuing on her way.

"But baby sister!" Olga cried.

"Get back here!" Bob called out angrily.

Helga heard her father and sister's voices continue to call out her name as she headed down the hall. However, she sent her thoughts elsewhere. Now that she knew she wouldn't be spending the night with her sister, or any nights for that matter since it was impossible to get her sister to close her mouth for a minute, she faced a new dilemma—finding a place to sleep.

'_I guess I could always crash on the sofa in the living room…' _She thought, heading in that direction.

By the time she made it downstairs in the living room, all the lights were turned out and the whole place seemed eerily quiet.

"Geez, it's like a ghost town down here…" Helga noted, "Exactly how I like it." She made herself right at home on one a red sofa. She closed her eyes.

"Ahh…I could get used to this…" She said, finally relaxing.

"Hey! Who's in here?!" a voice asked. Helga screamed, getting up with a start and all the lights subsequently turned on. Heart racing, she looked over by the lights to find Arnold's grandpa standing in the doorway with a baseball bat in his hands.

"Oh, it's only you, Gramps. Geez, you almost gave me a heart attack." Helga said, lying back down.

Phil lowered his bat, realizing who it was. "Hehehe…sorry to frighten you like that. I thought you were Oskar trying to steal all the food again. Hey, aren't you supposed to be in your room with that sister of yours?" He asked.

"Yeah, I was, but then it started to get a little crowded in there so I thought I could crash down here." Helga replied, nonchalantly.

"Oh, well, that explains why you're on the couch." He said. "But I got to tell you, I don't think it's a good idea for you to stay down here. First of all, you'll hardly get any sleep with all the people passing through here trying to get to the kitchen. Second, it gets pretty hot down here from the thermostat needing repair so I'm pretty sure you'll be boiling here in a couple of minutes. And third, that TV's going to blaring come tomorrow when the football game starts up and your "bed's" going to be taken."

Helga considered this and then sat back up again. "So then, where am I supposed to find a place to crash for 2 weeks?" she asked.

"Well, there is that room for you and your sist—"

"Nope. There's no way I'm going to spend another second with _Olga_. Keep trying," She refused.

"Hmm…well then, I suppose there is also that sofa in Arnold's room that you can use. I'm sure the Shortman won't mind a little company…" Phil suggested.

"A-Arnold?!" She gasped. That perked her right up.

Phil nodded. "Sure, if you want, I'll let him know that he has a guest coming and—"

"NO!" Helga exclaimed. He looked at her strangely.

"Hehe…what I mean is, I can handle it. No need to go through such a hassle and besides, I won't feel right if I don't ask myself since it's for me." She explained, flustered.

He eyed her for a second. Then, he relented. "Well, alright, if you need anything, I'll be just upstairs, two doors from the bathroom." He said, with a slight grin. "Try not to have too much fun with the Shortman now!"

She blushed. "Hehe…yeah…fun…hehe…" Helga said, tugging at her collar nervously.

Looking back at the red-faced girl, Phil's grin grew as he climbed the stairs. _'Won't be long now. I'm such a wily old coot…' _He thought.

Left alone to her thoughts, Helga paced the room. _'What am I going to do? I can't seriously spend the next 2 weeks in…_*gulp_*…Arnold's room. What if I crack and reveal to him my deepest darkest secret? How am I supposed to go without reciting some spontaneous love poem in front of him? Is that even possible?' _She thought, frantically. _'Get a hold of yourself, Helga, ol' girl. You can do this. Ohh…but what if I can't?!' _Her eyes widened in realization.

"I know! I'll call Phoebe!" She exclaimed. She went into the kitchen, pulling out her cellphone from inside her shirt. She dialed Phoebe's number.

"…Heyerdahl residence. Whom may I be speaking to?" She heard a tiny voice reply on the other end.

"Phoebe?!"

She heard Phoebe yawn. "Helga? What's the matter? Do you know what time it is?"

"Yes, I know. It's a quarter after 3. Listen, phoebe, I really need to talk to you. It's about Arnold. Remember how Bob had spent all that time searching for a place with a cheap rent? Well, he found it. And can you believe where he found a place? The Boarding House!"

"The Boarding House?! You mean—"

"Yes! But that's not the problem. You see, Arnold's grandpa only had two rooms left and so he figured Bob and Miriam could stay in one while Olga and I could stay in the other. Except Olga and Bob tag teamed on trying to drive me insane so I was forced to move out, but I couldn't crash out on the couch in the living room like I wanted because Arnold's grandpa doesn't recommend it. So then, he tells me that there's a couch in Arnold's room that I can crash on, so now I'm really worried about sleep in the same room as Arnold. I mean, what if I somehow crack and tell him my deepest darkest secret. That would ruin me!" Helga explained.

"Helga, calm down. You are the greatest person I know at keeping secrets. You can do this. I'm sure it's not much of a big dea—"

"Not a big deal?! Phoebe, its _Arnold_ for Cripes sake. For me, _everything's_ a big deal when it comes to him. Look, just promise me that you'll be there in case I need you."

"Well, it's kind of late, Helga and I don—"

"Phoebe!"

"Promising!"

"Good. I'll let you know how everything works out. And Phoebe?"

"Yes, Helga?"

"This conversation never happened."

"Forgetting!"

Helga hung up. Now that she felt a little better about her situation, all that was left to do was to face Arnold. She walked up the stairs and headed in the direction of Arnold's bedroom.

* * *

><p>...<p>

"Helga? As in, Helga G. Pataki is staying at your house right now?" Gerald's voice sounded through the receiver. "Mmm….mmm….mmm…you've got it bad, man."

"Aw, come on, Gerald. She's not so bad once you get to know her." Arnold replied.

"Arnold…three words: clothespin or plastic?"

Arnold blinked. "Huh? What does that have to do—"

"Look, man. When you die, I need to know whether to stick your bones in a plastic bag or hang them out to dry."

"_Gerald_…" Arnold responded with irritation.

"Ok, ok, but don't blame me when you have no place to put those bones when Helga G. Pataki comes in and breaks every bone you have…" Gerald warned.

"Right…" Arnold said.

Suddenly, he heard a knocking at the door.

"Just a minute, grandpa!" Arnold called out.

"Listen, I'll talk to you later, Gerald. Grandpa's at the door."

"Ok, man. Just don't forget. I'm here if you need me."

Arnold smiled. "Thanks, Gerald."

"No problem, buddy. Friends till the end."

"Yeah…bye Gerald…' Arnold replied, before hanging up.

Arnold walked over to the door and opened it.

"Hey Grandpa, I—Helga?!" He exclaimed, shocked to find Helga at the door.

"Yeah, yeah,…move it or lose it, Football head." She replied, pushing past him.

"What are you doing here? Weren't you going to be sharing a room with your sister?" He asked.

"Yeah, well. Things don't always turn out as planned, geek-bait. I'm crashing here now." She answered. She walked over to his bead and kicked back on it. "Yeah, this will work just fine…" She said. She sat up.

"Ok, here's the deal. I take this half of the room." She explained, drawing an invisible line from the bed to the desk. "And you have the other half."

"But…this is my room! And where am I supposed to sleep?" He argued.

"Oh, brother! Use your brain for once. There's the couch over there!" She said, reclining on the bed.

"Helga, instead of just walking in here and claiming everything, why don't you just ask me nicely? You may just be surprised." He suggested.

"Nope. This works much faster." She said.

Arnold groaned in frustration. "I'm not going to let you walk over me, Helga. This is my room, my rules." He replied angrily.

"Alright, alright, you don't have to cry about it. Geez, no need to get your panties in a twist, football head. I was just kidding. See? I'm getting off." She said, getting up from the bed as proof. She began to walk out of the room, but Arnold stopped her.

"Wait, Helga. You don't have to go. I just…didn't want you to try to control every aspect of my life like you tend to do." He said, rubbing the back of his head.

She walked away from the door. "Nah, it's cool. I just wanted to see if I could really push your buttons. It looks like it worked." She said, laughing.

He chuckled. "Yeah, well, I have to say, you're pretty good at it too." Arnold answered honestly.

"Got that right!" She said, using Arnold's black remote to open his coach up. A red couch flipped over. "Hey, got anything to wet a whistle?" She asked.

"Yeah, there are some yahoos downstair in the fridge. I can go get some, if you want."

"Nah, I got it. No need to wear those Football head of yours out." She said, already heading towards the door.

"I'll go with you." He said. "Just in case you don't know where to find them."

She raised an eyebrow. "Um, last time I checked. Drinks go in the fridge. Not much rocket science there."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. But I'll come along anyways. You're the guest after all." He answered.

"Eh, suit, yourself. Your house." She replied. Together, they descended the stairs and headed towards the kitchen.

* * *

><p>The door opened to Susie's room.<p>

"Come again!" Susie called out as Miriam waved goodbye, laughing.

"It was so nice to spend some quality time with you, Susie. We should really do this again soon." Miriam replied.

"Oh definitely. Same time tomorrow?" Susie asked, laughing. Oskar could be heard groaning in the background.

"Oh hush! I was only joking!" She chastised Oskar.

"I'll be here all 2 weeks!" Miriam said.

"Good to know! Tomorrow it is then," Susie said. She watched as Miriam walked a few doors down to her own room with Bob.

She shut the door. "That was such a nice visit. Maybe the fire was a blessing in disguise."

"Susie! I'm hungry! Make me a sandwich!" Oskar said, lying across the couch.

"Oh Oskar!" Susie said, rolling her eyes.

* * *

><p>...<p>

A few doors down, Miriam just came walking through the bedroom.

"And where have _you_ been?" Bob asked menacingly.

Miriam was oblivious to his anger. "Oh, well you know, I was in Susie's room. We had a cup of tea, chatted a little, watched the news, and—"

"Miriam, it's 4 in the morning! Do you know how I've been waiting here?!" Bob exclaimed.

"Oh…well…I see you've found the remote dear!" She laughed, walking over to him. She kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks for being patient, B…I'm going to go take a shower now, okay?" She said nonchalantly.

"But Miriam—!" Bob complained.

"Be back soon!" Miriam called out, shutting the door.

* * *

><p>In the kitchen, Helga pulled two drinks out of the fridge for herself and Arnold. Then, she opened a drawer and pulled out a bottle opener and opened both bottles.<p>

"Here you are, Football Head." Helga said, handing him a bottle.

"Wow Helga! I'm impressed! It's only been the first day and you seem to know where everything is!" Arnold said, noting her ease at quickly finding the shelf where his household keeps their yahoos and the bottle opener and the fact that she seemed to know that he had a remote to control the couch in his room and which buttons to use to control it.

Helga gasped, forgetting that as far as Arnold knew, she never visited his house before. "I…uh…just happen to have a good sense of direction in finding things. Yeah, that's it. It runs in the Pataki blood."

He gave her a confused look. "But Helga, wasn't there a time where you, me, Gerald, Phoebe, and your father all got lost in the woods during a camping trip? Why didn't you lead us to camp then?"

"That's…uh…because my good sense of direction only kicks in when I'm in other people's homes heh heh." She lamely answered. _'Oh Crimeny! Good one, Helga!' _She thought, wishing that she could hit herself for such an idiotic response.

Arnold looked at her strangely. "Helga, that doesn't even make sense!" He said.

"So? Who said I had to make sense, Football Head?!" Helga responded defensively.

"Whatever you say, Helga…" Arnold said, walking out of the kitchen with his soda.

"Darn right, bucko! Whatever_ I_ say!" She called after him.

…

When they arrived in Arnold's room, Helga collapsed on the couch. She was worn out. By then, she had already finished her drink and had thrown the bottle in the trash. She was going to catch some z's if it killed her.

Arnold too had finished his soda and sat down on his bed. He began to set his alarm.

"Oh brother! Who sets an alarm on a Saturday?" came Helga's sarcastic remark.

But Arnold expected it. "Well, usually I have to help out my grandparents with chores in the morning." He answered, setting his clock to 9 O'clock sharp.

"Well, just make sure to put it on vibrate or you'll have another chore on your hands—taming me." Helga said, getting more comfortable on the couch.

Arnold chuckled, tossing over a blanket. The blanket landed on Helga's body. Arnold watched as she pulled the blanket up closer to her face.

"Thanks Arnold….for everything," Came her tired reply.

Arnold was surprised for a moment. Helga? Showing gratitude? And actually addressing him by his actual name when she wasn't angry? Maybe Helga had a nice side after all…

He smiled, watching the rise and fall of her chest as she took even breaths now. She was fast asleep and actually looked pretty peaceful, he noted.

He smiled, walking past her slumbering form to turn off the lights.

"Good night, Helga…" He said softly before getting into his bed. He took one last look at Helga sleeping peacefully. Then, he closed his eyes and joined her in slumber.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes: Well, that's it for Chapter #2! I wanted to include more but the chapter was getting pretty long so I guess I'll save the rest for Chapter #3.<p>

Next up: You'll experience the type of craziness that makes up the boarding house. You'll see Arnold's date with Lila along with a little bit of Little Miss Perfect's background story. You'll also get to see some of Helga's evil tactics to break them up and where it leads her in her relationship to Arnold and finally secrets will be revealed! So stay tuned! XD

Reviews are always appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3 (Part One)

**Chapter #3: The Story of Helga G. Pataki (Part One)  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: Hey guys! Long time no see! Sorry for the long wait! This chapter took way longer than I was expecting. If you're reading this now, thank you so much for sticking around to read this chapter, and also, thanks to those who've left favorites/reviews/alerts on this story. All of your words and support have been very encouraging, and are always a joy to read.

Okay . . . so, originally, I was planning on having this chapter as one long chapter, but after seeing the length(a little over 20,000 words, which is 52 pages), I have decided to divide the chapter into two parts to give you guys a breather.

Key information about this chapter—a lot happens and I mean A LOT, so get ready. Things escalate very quickly, people get mad, arguments get had, and there are quite a few discoveries in this chapter. This is also the chapter where we see the antics of Arnold's eccentric family, Arnold's date with Lila, and how the Patakis adjust to life at the Boarding House.

I wish you guys a happy reading, and I hope you enjoy it! As always, reviews are greatly appreciated!

And a BIG thanks to **songfire15** for being my beta!

* * *

><p>At 9a.m., Arnold's alarm clock sprang to life. "HEY ARNOLD! HEY ARNOLD! HEY ARNOLD! HEY ARNOLD!" the clock blared continuously. Arnold remained fast asleep, a content smile on his face. Helga, on the other hand, was painfully aware of the offending noise. Groaning, she groggily threw a pillow cushion at it. Unfortunately, the pillow ended up socking Arnold in the face. The impact startled Arnold awake. He sat up abruptly, blinking twice. Upon seeing the pillow cushion, he shot an annoyed look at the blonde girl attempting to sleep on the couch.<p>

"Hey! Watch it!" he shouted. He reached over and shut off the blaring alarm clock.

Helga turned over so that she was facing Arnold. "Oh, sorry for ruining your precious slumber, Sleeping Beauty," she replied with sarcasm.

Arnold sat up on his bed, rubbing his eyes. "I needed to get up anyways," he said. "Grandma usually complains when I'm not there on time to help set the table for breakfast."

"Great. You do that. I, on the other hand, am going back to bed." Helga replied, pulling the covers over her face.

He sighed._ 'It's just for two weeks_,' he reminded himself. With that in mind, he rose up from his bed and headed out the door.

After a few moments of silence, Helga opened one eyelid to find the room empty. _'He's gone. Now's my chance,'_ she thought. She got up from the couch and walked over to Arnold's desk. _'He must have something here that I can use for my collection,' _she thought, her eyes scanning the contents of his desk. She rummaged through his supplies until a blue notebook caught her eyes.

**PROPERTY OF ARNOLD. KEEP OUT.**

She rolled her eyes. _'Oh, brother. He actually keeps a diary in here? No wonder the kid's a softie. What next?' _she thought. Curiosity piqued, she snagged the notebook, keeping it hidden underneath her arm. _'I just have to know what goes on in that football head of his.' _

She hoped that maybe, just maybe, the diary mentioned her name, and perhaps Arnold had held an inkling of something special, just for her. _'It's just an old book, anyways. He won't even know it's missing.'_

As she began to walk out of the room, she saw Arnold's bed occupying the space off to the side. Her eyes focused on the soft pillow carrying the delicious aroma of Arnold's strawberry shampoo. _'Just one quick whiff and I swear I'm off the stuff for good,'_ she thought, walking over to his pillow and inhaling his scent. Her eyes rolled back in pure delight, her face holding a lopsided grin. She swooned.

"Um . . . what are you doing?" A familiar young boy's voice asked from the doorway.

"ARNOLD!" she exclaimed. Eyes widened, she spun around quickly to see the blonde haired boy looking back at her in confusion. Her face instantly turned a deep shade of red, her heart pounding in her chest. "I, uh . . . was just checking your bed for any bed bugs in the sheets hehe." She answered, flustered. _'Helga, you idiot! Why didn't you remember to at least shut the door before engaging in your usual lovesick acts?' _she chided herself.

Arnold's eyes gave her a look of disbelief. He was not buying it. "Uh-huh . . . and you need my pillow because . . . .?" he replied, motioning to his pillow in her hands.

She looked down to the pillow still in her grasp. She quickly threw it down on the bed, laughing nervously.

His eyebrows knit together in concern. "Helga, what's going on? You're acting pretty strange today," he asked.

She crossed her arms. "Hmph. Strange?! You're the one who's acting strange, asking all these questions lately!" she accused.

She mimicked his voice. "'Helga, how do you know the place?' 'Helga, where am I to sleep?' 'Helga, why are you acting strange?' Geez, it's hard to get a break around here without feeling like I'm being pressured into acting a certain way."

She walked up to him until she was nose to nose with him. "Well, get it through that thick skull of yours already, Arnoldo. Helga G. Pataki lives by her rules and her rules alone. Got it?" she said, holding up a fist to him.

Arnold was not impressed. "Helga, I just caught you over here sniffing my pillow. I think I have a right to be a little concerned," he answered, placing his hands on his hips.

"So? I was sniffing a pillow. So what? Maybe I just felt like it, okay?" she countered.

He raised an eyebrow. "You felt like sniffing my pillow?" he questioned in disbelief.

She blushed. "What?! Are you deaf?"

Her words caused Arnold to remember their time on FTi after Helga confessed her feelings for him due to it supposedly being the heat of the moment. 'What? Are you deaf?!' she had said. He vividly recalled the feel of her lips on his. How good it felt to share that special moment together. He blushed.

"Arnold?" a distant voice called.

"Arnold?!"

"Hey Arnold!"

He shook his head. What just happened? Did he seriously just have a daydream about Helga a few moments ago? Helga's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Okay, now I know I'm not the one who's acting strange. What? Did someone suddenly take hold of your brain while I wasn't looking?" she asked.

_'Yeah . . . you,'_ his brain automatically answered. Wait. What did he just think? _'I must be going insane. Did I just admit that Helga was on my mind? And why was she even on my mind?!'_ he thought.

He took a deep breath. "Okay, look, obviously we're both still a little tired from that fire yesterday. We just need to take a step back and agree to forget everything that just happened a few moments ago. Deal?" He reasoned.

_'Both?'_ Helga thought. _'What does he mean by that?'_ "Fine, but I'll only agree on one condition," she replied.

"Fair enough," he answered. "What's the condition?"

"You tell me what was going through your mind just a few seconds ago."

He blushed. "Oh, I, uh . . . ." he answered, flustered.

" . . . And you better not lie. I'll be able to tell instantly," she asserted, watching him closely.

"Well, uh . . . ." he said, rubbing the back of his head. "Is this really that important, Helga?"

"Oh, I don't know, Football Head. You tell me." she responded with a smug grin.

"Well, you see . . . ." he stalled. _'What do I tell her?' _he thought nervously.

She rolled her eyes. "Look, just spit it out already. What were you thinking about?!"

"Helga, can't we just—" he tried.

"ARNOLD!" she shouted.

"—YOU!" he shouted back, his voice echoing around the room.

Helga's eyes widened two whole sizes.

Realizing the implications of what he just said, he continued quickly. "Look, Helga. It's not what you think. It was just a faint memory back to the time we were on FTi during the heat of the moment, and I guess I got a little carried away and—"

Helga's mind tuned him out. She was floored. _'He thought of THAT?!'_ she thought, her eyebrow raised in surprise.

As Arnold continued explaining, his eyes caught sight of a familiar item underneath Helga's arm. "Hey! What's that thing under your arm?!" he asked, pointing to the blue notebook in question.

Following his line of vision, Helga immediately stiffened, knowing exactly what he was referring to. She decided to play dumb. "Thing? What thing?" she asked, looking around nervously. She hid the notebook behind her back.

Arnold gave her a half-lidded look, knowing her trick. "Helga, I just saw you hide that same blue thing I was talking about behind your back."

"Look football head . . . I, uh, don't know what you're talking about but whatever it is, it's not any of your business," she said, trying to feign anger, but nerves were making her unbelievable. She looked around nervously for an out.

He sighed, trying a new tactic. "Okay. Fine. You don't have anything behind your back. But, just so that we're clear, could you please turn around and show me that you don't have anything?" he asked.

She gulped. "I, uh, can't." she said.

"Why not?"

"Well . . . why should I do anything you say anyways? Last time I checked, this isn't Simon says," she defended.

"Helga, it's my house, my rules. Now tell me what it is!" he demanded, walking closer to her. She started backpedaling, intimidated by his proximity.

"No, really, I don't know what you're talking about!" she said.

He inched closer till he was in her face.

Her eyes widened. "Seriously, paste for brains, if you don't stop, I'll—I'll—" she stopped short.

Arnold was now close enough to stare into her frightened blue eyes. She could feel his breath on her face. He placed a hand on her waist and the other behind her back and dipped her.

She yelped.

He gave her his half-lidded smile as he spoke in a sultry voice. "You'll do . . . what?" he asked.

She didn't answer. Her breath hitched in her throat. She felt the heat rising to her cheeks.

He took advantage of her distraction and reached behind her back and carefully slipped his fingers into her hands and grabbed the notebook.

"A-Arnold . . . what are you—"

"Relax, Helga. I'm only going to take a peek," he said, his sea-green eyes never leaving hers.

He placed the notebook in front of Helga's face. His eyes scanned the cover and saw just what Helga was carrying. His journal!

He immediately let her go and she fell to the floor with a thump.

"What the—! Arnold, have you lost your mind?!" she asked.

He ignored her. "Have you been going through my stuff?!" He asked in disbelief.

She was speechless. "I was just . . . ."

He cut her off. "I don't believe this! First, you barge into my room and take my bed. Then, you throw a pillow at me this morning when I was sleeping—"

"Hey! That was an accident," she argued.

"—and now, you go through my stuff and take something important from me, so that you can use it against me and treat me like your whipping boy!" he said.

"I knew you were the school bully, but I never thought someone like you could stoop so low as to try to steal from a person who's been nothing but a friend to you. Gerald was right. You're hopeless." With that, he began to walk out the door until Helga intercepted him, blocking the exit.

"Wait!" She said. She took a deep breath. "Please Arnold. Just hear me out. You have to believe me, I never meant to hurt you."

He crossed his arms. "Then _why_, Helga? Why did you decide to take my journal when it clearly says to 'keep out'?" He asked, his tone stern.

"I don't know! I just . . . I wanted to know more about you, okay?!" she exclaimed.

His green eyes widened in surprise at the revelation.

She sighed. "I know that I'm not always a nice person and I know that can make me a little hard to get along with, and I'm sorry because you don't deserve all of the things I've put you through. But all I've ever wanted was for you to acknowledge me, and when you saved me from that fire yesterday, I didn't know how to react. I was so happy that someone cared enough to rescue me, but I just didn't know how to repay you since I'm not used to anyone going out of their way for me. I thought that maybe if I learned a few things about you from reading your journal, then I could find something that we had in common and use that to talk to you more and become better friends," she explained.

"But, Helga, all you really had to do was ask me and I would've been more open to telling you things about me. You didn't have to take my journal," he responded.

"I know that, but I just can't do that," she said.

"Why not?"

"Because I can't!" She exclaimed. Then, she added a little softer. "I just can't. I have a stupid reputation to uphold."

"I don't understand. Why is having a reputation so important to you?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Helga shrugged his hand off, turning away from him. "Look," she started. "I promise not to take any more of your things without your permission. It was wrong of me to take your journal in the first place and I'm sorry. I hope that someday you'll be able to forgive me. And if it helps, I haven't read your journal yet." She turned around, facing him. "That's all I wanted to say."

With that, she moved aside to allow Arnold to leave if he wanted, and then walked back into the room, towards the couch.

Arnold turned around to see Helga packing up her stuff. He sighed, walking over to her. He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Helga, wait. You don't have to go," he said.

She turned around in surprise, her blue eyes meeting his green. She raised an eyebrow. "I don't?" she asked.

He gave her a small smile, shaking his head. "I forgive you, Helga. I shouldn't have exploded at you like that. I guess I was just angry because my journal means so much to me." His smile faded, looking to the blue journal in his hands. "You see, my parents gave this journal to me when I was just a baby, and it's one of the only things I have to remember them by," he said.

Helga looked away sadly. "I had no idea that journal was so important to you. Sorry for taking it," she said softly.

"Yeah . . . ." he replied, looking over the journal thoughtfully. Then, his eyes turned to her. "But, I am happy that you told me the truth, Helga, and that's why I forgave you. And I meant what I said last night. We may have our ups and downs, but you and I will always be good friends."

Helga's face fell at this last line. She plopped down on the red couch. "Yeah . . . friends . . . ." she replied with less enthusiasm. No sooner had she said that, the couch flipped back into the wall, trapping Helga in the dark space. Arnold jumped in surprise.

"What the—! Help! Let me out!" Helga shouted, banging on the couch.

"Don't worry, Helga. I'll get you out in a second. I just have to find the remote for the couch," she heard Arnold's muffled response.

"Well, make it snappy, Football head! It smells like sweaty socks back here," she called back. She looked around at her surroundings. It was pitch black, but she could see a tiny sliver of light shining from Arnold's room through a crack in the wall. _'This sure brings back good ol' memories . . . ._' she thought, reflecting back to the time she had to spend the night behind Arnold's couch in order to get her secret-spilling parrot back.

She was brought out of her reverie when the couch suddenly snapped back out of the wall, taking her with it. She was immediately sent airborne, her body crashing onto the carpet before Arnold. A pink notebook hit her in the head before hitting the carpet in front of her.

"Ow! Geez, warn a person the next time you decide to catapult them out of your wall, paste-for-brains," Helga said, rubbing her head.

"Sorry Helga. Are you okay?" Arnold asked, holding a hand out to her.

She took his hand, allowing him to help her up. "Yeah, but I think something hit me," she said. She looked down to find a pink notebook lying on the ground. She gasped, recognizing the book. _'Is that MY diary?' _she thought in shock. She knelt down to pick it up, but was surprised when her hand fell on top of another. She looked up in surprise to find Arnold's green eyes staring back at her. They both retracted their hands, blushing.

"Uh, sorry," he said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

She grabbed the notebook, standing back up again. Arnold stood up as well.

She shook the book in his face. "Since when do you like pink?" she asked in confusion. _'And most importantly, why the heck does he have my diary?' _she thought.

"I can explain," he said.

"This outta be good . . ." Helga remarked, crossing her arms.

"It's just . . . I met this really pretty girl once at a restaurant on Valentine's Day. She pretended to be another person, just so that she could spend time with me. I wanted to ask her name, but she said she couldn't tell me." He stopped, having a faraway look in his eyes. "I never saw her again," he said.

Helga's eyes widened. _'He's talking about that night I pretended to be Cecile!_' she thought.

He continued. "A few months before that, I found this pink diary on the school bus. It had no name on it, so Gerald and I spent some time trying to match up the handwriting with someone who might have been the owner. Bottom line: we couldn't figure out who owner the diary. But even though we couldn't find the owner of the diary, I couldn't help but think that maybe, just maybe the diary belonged to that same girl I met on Valentine's Day. So I re-read the diary, hoping to learn some more things about her. I was really touched by what was in it. It makes me happy to know that someone took the time to write a whole diary about me. And it made me realize something," he said. He looked to Helga. "I actually think I might . . . like her-like her."

"Really Arnold?" she asked shyly, but then stopped herself remembering that Arnold didn't know the diary was hers. Part of her just wanted to fling her arms around him and proclaim that it was her diary and that she was the girl (or rather impersonator) who met him at dinner that night, but she thought better of it. Proclaiming all that would just make things even more confusing for Arnold. _'After all, he made it clear that he didn't want to have anything to do with a girl who goes around stalking him at night writing poetry and dedicating shrines to his likeness,' _she thought.

She amended her earlier statement. "I-I mean, what about Lila? Don't tell me goody-two-shoe Arnold's now juggling two girls on his shoulder . . . . "

Arnold shook his head. "No, Helga. It isn't like that at all. Lila and I are just two good friends hanging out on Sunday night," he said.

Helga scoffed. "Hmph. Sounds like a date to me . . . ."

"Well, it isn't. And besides, I barely ever get to hang out with Lila."

"'Barely ever's' stretching it a bit, don't you think?" Helga replied, recalling the times Arnold and Lila went on dates together, but never 'date-dates'.

"It's true, Helga. I'm over Lila now and besides . . . she likes someone else now." Arnold said, a bit bitterly on the last part, as if he was trying to get a bad taste out of his mouth.

Helga didn't like the sound of that. It was almost if Arnold wanted it to be more than just two friends hanging out together. "Tell you what . . . I'll believe it's not a date if you bring Geraldo along for the ride," she said to prove a point.

Arnold's eyes widened. "G-Gerald?" he said in surprise. "No, he's not really into stuff like that. He'd probably pass if I asked him. He really doesn't like feeling like a third wheel."

"Then I'll tag along," Helga said casually, curious to see what his response would be.

Arnold looked taken aback. "You?"

Helga narrowed her eyes. "Yeah me, got something you want to say, Arnoldo?"

"N-no. It's just that . . . I didn't really peg you as someone who'd be interested in seeing a bunny movie."

And she wasn't. Truth be told, she had better things to do than sit through a 3-hour film, bored to death. But he didn't need to know that.

"And what if I am that type? What are you going to do about it?"

"Uh—"

"What's the matter, football head? Too proud to bring another person on your so-called play date? Three's a crowd now?"

"No . . . it's just . . . ."

"What? That I was right? That the only reason you don't want me to come is because you're still not over Lila? Huh? Is that it? I'm waiting, _Arnold_." Helga interrogated, knowing that she made her point, but feeling a bit hurt now that the truth became clear.

"No, it's just, I'm already bringing Lila and if you tag along it'll make it seem like I'm kind of a . . . ."

"A what? What could be so bad about bringing two girls along?" Helga thought of all the things that Arnold could be labelled and nothing seemed bad to her. Guys actually got props among their guy friends for being with more than one girl.

". . . a wuss."

_'A wuss?_' Helga thought in surprise. That was the big crisis? "You've got to be kidding me. Nobody's going to think you're a wuss for taking two girls to the movies."

"Yeah, to see Enchanted Bunnies II!" he argued. "I'll be a laughing stock. People won't think I took you guys to the movies, they'll think you guys took me."

Helga started cracking up. "That's what you were worried about? Oh man, this is great."

Arnold looked annoyed. "Well, yeah. Helga, you might think it's funny, but you're not the one who will have to face Harold and the guys on Monday."

"Look, Football head. If you're that hung up about it, then mums the word. Who's going to know? I won't tell anyone, Lila will keep quiet if you tell her, and Gerald's got your back no matter what."

"But Gerald can't keep a secret."

"So? Just make something up. You don't have to tell him everything. Lord knows he doesn't tell you everything . . . need I remind you about Fuzzy Slippers?"

"Yeah, but I can't hide anything from Gerald. He's my best friend. And besides, I'm no good at keeping secrets either," he said, recalling an incident where he had to dress up in a bunny outfit just to appease Peapod kid.

"Calm down. No need to get your panties in a twist." She said, chuckling a bit when she got the 'not helping' look from Arnold. "If it means that much to you, I'll just beat up anyone who says something about you."

"That'll be even worse because I let a girl fight my battles . . . ."

Helga shrugged. "So? What's wrong with a girl fighting? I'll be your body guard, free of charge."

"Forget it, Helga. It's not happening."

_'Oh I'll show you what's not happening!' _Helga thought, insulted. What was up with guys and their big egos? "You know what? Fine. Clearly, you don't want me to tag along, you don't want Gerald to tag along, and I'm willing to bet you'll have an excuse for why any of the guys can't come along, so go. Have fun on your date. See if I care."

"Helga . . . I already said it's not like that. I promised Lila I'd go see a movie with her. If I show up with a bunch of other guys, she'll be really confused and it'll be like I didn't take her feelings into consideration."

"Oh, I understand."

"Y-you do?"

"I understand that you really want to go out on a date with Lila and all I'm doing is wasting my time trying to find out an answer I already know!"

"Helga, I really don't understand why you're so angry! I'm not even the one who wanted to go. Gerald set me up."

"Angry? You think this is angry? You haven't seen anything yet!"

"Helga, there's really no need to be upset. Besides, this has nothing to do with you—"

"FINE!" Helga shouted. "You want to go on your date so bad, then be my guest. I won't trouble you anymore." With that, she stormed out of the room. He ran after her.

"Helga, wait!" he called out, catching up to her.

She turned back around to give him a piece of her mind. "Save it for your date. And don't even_ think_ about speaking to me again! Ever!" Helga shouted, continuing on her way. _'Stupid football head . . . how could he be so dense? This has everything to do with me! I should be on that date with Arnold, not Lila!' _she thought, heading down the stairs. _'Looks like I'll just have to take matters into my own hands later. "Operation: Sabotage Arnold's date" is now under way,'_ she thought with an evil smile.

Arnold sighed, watching Helga disappear down the staircase. "This is going to be a long day," he said to no one in particular before shutting his door and descending the staircase after her.

* * *

><p>...<p>

As Arnold headed the hallway, he caught sight of Helga beginning to descend the second staircase from across the hall. "Helga!" he called out, quickening his pace to catch up with her. She continued her descent.

"Helga!" he tried again, approaching her from behind. He followed her until they reached the bottom. "Helga, wait," he said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She sighed heavily, turning around to face him. She crossed her arms.

"What is it _now_, geek bait?" she asked harshly. "I thought I told you I was done speaking to you."

Relieved that he finally got her attention, Arnold took his hand off her shoulder. "Yeah, well, you might be through speaking to me, but that doesn't mean I'm done speaking to you," he answered.

She scoffed. "Oh yeah? Well, maybe I'm done listening to you," she replied, turning her back to him.

"Helga, you don't have to listen long. I promise. All I need is a minute of your time. Just one minute, and then you can decide if you ever want to speak to me again," he said.

Helga thought it over. "You have thirty seconds," she said.

Arnold rolled his eyes. _'Leave it to Helga to be impatient as ever,' _he thought, considering a way he could cut everything to the chase.

He took a deep breath. "About what happened back there . . . I didn't mean to make you angry. I'm sorry if I made it seem like I don't like being around you. Because I do like hanging around you. Helga, you're one of my closest friends, but I hate that we're always arguing." He held out a hand to her. "Can we please just start over and call it a truce?" he asked, keeping his sea-green eyes levelled with hers.

'_Sure, we can put this all_ _behind us once you agree to keep Lila out of your life out of your life for good,'_ she thought. Nonetheless, she took his hand.

"Okay, fine. Truce," she agreed, shaking his hand.

Arnold stared back at her in shock. _'That was . . . unexpected. I thought it was going to be a lot harder to convince Helga not to argue.' _

Noticing Arnold's blank stare, she said, "What?! Why the heck do you keep staring at me? Do I have something on my face?" she questioned.

He shook his head, snapping out of it. "No, no . . . I just . . . ." he shook his head again, thinking better of it. "Never mind. It's nothing," he said. He gave a reassuring smile. "I'm glad we're not fighting anymore."

"Yeah, sure . . . ." she thought. _'But don't think this is over, Football Head. I'll play nice right up until I sabotage your date tonight.' _

She grinned, slapping him on the back. "Well, what are we standing here for? I'm starving!" she exclaimed, hurrying down the hall.

Arnold's smile faded a little. "I sure hope Grandma doesn't dress up as a fruit ninja again," he said, holding his stomach. He headed towards the kitchen to help set the table for breakfast.

…

On one side of the dining room table, Ernie, Oskar, Susie, Miriam, and Mr. Hyunh sat, respectively, awaiting their breakfast. Beside Mr. Hyunh sat Arnold, Helga, and Bob, at the head of the table. Phil sat at the other end, across from Bob. There remained two empty chairs between Helga and Bob, and Ernie and Phil, to be filled by Gertie and Olga once they finally decided to grace their presence at the table. Susie and Miriam were chatting away earnestly while the rest of the table sat in silence as each person kept their eyes glued to some inanimate object, desperately trying to avoid eye contact for fear of being obligated to engage in conversation. The constant ticking of a clock could be heard in the background. Finally, Phil had enough.

"Pookie, what's taking so long with breakfast?!" he called out to the kitchen door behind him.

"Yeah, I'm starved!" Ernie agreed.

"Yeah, me too!" Oskar chimed in.

"Copy that! Coming in five . . . four . . . three . . . two . . . one . . . ." Gertie's voice responded from behind the door. She emerged from the kitchen dressed in an astronaut spacesuit, helmet included, and carrying several plates full of what was perceived to be breakfast. All eyes were on her as she began divvying out plates to everyone.

"Jumping Jehoshaphat! Pookie! What have I told you about wearing that suit to breakfast?! You're scaring everyone!" Phil cried out.

"Oh, now don't be silly. You know there's no oxygen in outer space," she said coaxingly.

Phil shook his head. "You're going to put me in a nuthouse one of these days," he grumbled.

"What kind of nutcase walks around in a spacesuit?!" Bob exclaimed.

"The kind that's out of this world," Gertie replied with a wink. She handed a plate to Phil.

He looked down at his plate in dismay. "Aw Pookie! You know what raspberries do to me. How am I supposed to eat these dried-up ones?" he complained.

"Did you try eating it with your mouth?" Gertie asked with a laugh. As Phil grumbled in response, she continued passing out plates until she reached Helga.

"Oh Eleanor! What a surprise! How goes the mission back on earth?" she asked, looking expectantly at Helga.

Helga's eyes widened, instantly recalling the time Gertie used the same nickname for her when Helga mysteriously found herself in the boarding house kitchen after a case of sleepwalking caused by her dad's pork rinds.

She hesitated. "Um . . . fine?" Helga guessed.

Gertie seemed to accept that answer because she nodded and said, "Good to hear!" Then, she continued working around the table.

Arnold turned to Helga. "Eleanor?" he asked.

"Hey, don't look at me! You're the one with the crazy family!" Helga defended.

Once Gertie was finished passing out plates, she said, "Everyone, be sure to eat up now! You're all going to need your strength for the big mission ahead of us! We're heading to the moon!" With that, she took her seat beside Phil, took off her space helmet, and began eating through a bag of dry ice cream. Ernie made the loony bin sign beside his ear. Mr. Hyunh laughed, stifling the noise by placing a hand over his mouth.

"Crimeny! What kind of junk are you feeding us?!" Bob suddenly exclaimed, causing everyone to look over at him. He stood up in outrage, holding space food bags, one by one. "Dried up eggs and bacon?! Pancake chips?! How's a grown man supposed to eat this stuff?!" he said.

Helga rolled her eyes. "Of course. Leave it to _Bob _to make a spectacle out of everything," she remarked.

Bob glared back at her. "Hey! Watch your mouth, missy!" he replied.

She rolled her eyes. _'Right, because I definitely learned how to watch my mouth from you, Dad,'_ Helga thought sarcastically.

Bob turned back to Phil. "Listen here, I pay _decent_ money to eat _decent _food! I am not paying for whatever _crap_ your wife laid out here. Now, unless I get some decent food soon, I'll be taking my cash elsewhere. Capiche?" he said.

Phil stood up from his chair, glaring back at him. "No, you listen here, Bob. I've had just about enough of you. Your threats aren't going to work on me. My wife didn't have to give you and your family anything to eat. It's not included in the contract, and you paid for rent and utilities only. But if you want to argue and have things your way all the time, then I suggest you take you and your family elsewhere. _Capiche?_"

"Oh really?! Well, maybe we should!" Bob argued, standing up.

"Fine! Just don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Phil said.

Arnold stood up, seeing where things were going. "Guys, guys . . . can't we all just agree to get along? You two have been arguing since we got here, and besides, Mr. Pataki's family is only here for two weeks." He said.

"Hey! Tell that grandson of yours to pipe down! The men are handling this," Bob said.

"Stay out of this, Shortman," Phil agreed. Arnold sighed, sitting back down in defeat.

"I want my money back, old man!" Bob shouted.

"Stop calling me an old man!" Phil yelled.

"Oh brother, here we go again…" Helga said, giving a bored look. She took a bite out of her dried up chicken tenders. Her eyes widened. "Hey, this stuff's ain't half-bad," she said in surprise, taking several other bites.

Meanwhile, Bob and Phil had ganged up on each other. Bob grabbed hold of the hem of Phil's shirt.

"Don't play with me, gramps!"

Phil's eyes narrowed. "The name's _Phil_. Now take your hands off of me," he said.

"Make me," Bob dared.

"Oh my! Will someone please stop them?!" Susie said, looking to any volunteers. She looked to Miriam. "Miriam, what about you? This is your husband we're talking about!"

Miriam sighed. "Okay, I'll try," she said, standing up. "B…don't you think you should—"

"Quiet Miriam!" Bob said, cutting her off.

Miriam sighed again. She resigned herself to sitting down again.

"Hey! Don't talk to her that way!" Susie defended, but Bob ignored her. He wasn't the only one to ignore Susie.

Ernie kept his focus on Bob and Phil. "I place ten bucks on the big guy in the fight," he said.

"Are you crazy? Grandpa wise with experience. Mr. Pataki don't stand chance. Ten bucks on grandpa," Mr. Hyunh countered.

"You're on!" Ernie agreed.

"Hey! I want to bet too!" Oskar chimed in.

"I can't believe you guys. You're placing bids at a time like this?! Why, you all should be ashamed of yourselves! And Oskar, you don't have any money!" Susie reminded him.

"Oh right ehehe," Oskar said, rubbing his head. He looked to Susie. "Susie, can I borrow ten bucks?" Oskar tried.

Susie rolled her eyes. "Oh Oskar!"

Phil and Bob were having a stare down until Phil kicked Bob in his weak knee, causing Bob to let go of Phil's shirt.

"OUCH! SON OF A—!" Bob exclaimed, using both hands to grab hold of his knee as he hopped around in agony. "You're going to pay for that!"

"Punch him in the kisser, Phil!" Gertie cheered, caught up in the excitement.

"_Grandma_ . . . ." Arnold said, giving her a look.

Just as Bob was about to give Phil a run for his money, Olga emerged from the kitchen door, carrying a tall stack of ten rectangular tin foil pans.

"Good morning, everyone! I have a special treat for you all!" She said cheerfully. "I have taken the liberty of making an Alaskan special breakfast that I learned during my time I spent with the Inuit people, and I just can't wait to share it with you all," she said cheerfully. She walked over and placed each of the tin foil pans in the center of the table.

"Alright, real food!" Ernie cheered, helping himself to a pan. Mr. Hyunh, Oskar, and Susie did the same.

"Oh goody! Ms. Thinks-she's-perfect comes to the rescue once again," Helga remarked.

"Oh, come on, Helga. Your sister's just trying to help out," Arnold said.

"Yeah, like she ever stops helping out," she said.

Bob opened the lid to one of the tin containers to find a large, fluffy omelettes with orange slices on the side.

"Do you like it, daddy? I made grilled salmon omelettes with a dash of hollandaise," Olga stated proudly.

"Like it?! I love it! I'm digging into mine right now!" Bob said excitedly. As promised, he stuck a forkful of the omelette in his mouth. "You've outdone yourself yet again, Olga! Patakis know how to cook food. You all should be paying us for this!"

The delicious aroma of fresh fish filled the air. Phil's stomach growled. "I'll just have a bite," he said, giving into the temptation. But as he reached down for his food, he was met with resistance. He looked up to find a grinning Oskar holding onto the other end of his pan.

"Why, you~! Quit trying to steal other people's food, you dirty thief!" Phil said, snatching the pan out of Oskar's hands.

"Eheheh . . . I was just making sure you knew it was there," Oskar replied sheepishly.

"Yeah, right . . . ." Phil said, before turning his attention to his food. After the first bite, he promptly shoveled the rest of his food into his mouth.

Beside him, Gertie shrugged, continuing to eat another bag of dry ice cream.

"Aren't you going to eat your omelette, Arnold?" Olga asked, looking to the blonde boy sitting across from her.

"That's okay. I'm actually not very hungry," Arnold said. In actuality, he really didn't want to hurt his grandma's feelings since she went through all the trouble preparing her "space food" and no one was eating it.

"If Arnold's not eating his food, can I have it?" Oskar asked, already reaching for the pan.

"Not before me," Ernie said, digging his fork into the entire omelet and bringing the omelette to his own plate.

"Hey!" Oskar exclaimed angrily.

Ernie shrugged. "Snooze you lose," he said with a mouthful of omelette.

Meanwhile, Olga looked to Helga. "So, baby sis, I was thinking that after breakfast, the two of us can head over to the Hillwood mall and pick up some cute new outfits for you," she said enthusiastically.

"And I was thinking that that's a terrible idea, and I can pick out my own outfits. By_ myself_," Helga answered.

Olga looked crestfallen at Helga's response. "But baby sister, I—"

"—can leave me alone and do your own shopping," Helga remarked.

Tears began to pool in Olga's eyes. "I just . . . I just thought we could," were the only words she could get out before she started bawling.

Bob face palmed. "Oh for the love of—not the waterworks again," he exclaimed. "Olga, just go with your sister already so she can stop crying already!"

"It's _Helga_, Dad. _Helga_. And you can forget me dealing with Miss Ray of Sunshine all afternoon," she asserted.

If possible, Olga's wailing only increased in volume when she heard that Helga still refused to go with her.

"For once I agree with Big Bob here. I think it's better you go with you sister, and give us all a break," Phil said, plugging his ears with his index fingers.

The other boarders agreed.

Arnold looked to Helga. "I think you should go with your sister too, Helga. It's probably not as bad as you think. And who knows? She might surprise you," he persuaded.

Helga cast a long, drawn out sigh. "Oh fine. Since everyone can't seem to get off my back about it, I'll go with Olga. But don't expect this little endeavor to be anything short of a one-time deal," she conceded, crossing his arms.

Olga immediately stopped crying, dabbing a tissue at her now mascara smeared eyes. "Oh baby sis, I just know we're going to have so much fun!" she exclaimed. She looked to everyone. "And later, I can't wait to show everyone my award-winning film from Bennington College, starring Olga Pataki, award-winning actress, as Carmen in _Carmen_," she said cheerily.

"That's my Olga!" Bob said, taking another bite of his omelette.

Everyone else grumbled.

Olga didn't seem to notice. She stood up. "Well, I'll start cleaning the dishes," she said.

"One of the great wonders of space food is that it leaves no residue and is easy to clean up," Gertie stated, smiling. "But since none of you had any, you all have yourself a mess." She rose up, putting on her space helmet, and casually strode away. Everyone was silent until Phil spoke.

"Crazy old bird," Phil muttered.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Olga's red convertible was top down, and blasting with rock music as the car cruised along to Hillwood mall. Olga sat in the driver's seat, her dark shades on and a green bandana tightly wrapped around her hair, while Helga sat next to her, her arms folded, as she stared aimlessly out the passenger window. They were about halfway to the mall now.

Olga reached over to turn down the volume of the radio. Upon hearing the volume lowered, Helga reached over and raised the volume.

"_Helga_," Olga said, turning her head to give her sister a look.

"What? You have to speak louder. I can't hear you," Helga said, grinning.

Olga reached over to turn the volume down again, but Helga slapped her hand away. "I don't think so," Helga replied.

"What?!" Olga called out.

"Never mind," Helga said, "Just get back to driving,"

"What?!" Olga repeated.

Helga face palmed.

"Isn't it great that we're finally spending time with each other, baby sis?" Olga said, looking back to the road.

"What?!" Helga said in annoyance, turning her head back to her sister.

Olga spoke even louder. "I SAID, 'ISN'T IT GREAT THAT WE'RE FINALLY—"

Helga turned down the volume.

Noting the volume change, Olga lowered her voice. "—spending time with each other, baby sis?"

Helga shrugged. "I guess," she said in a bored tone.

Olga giggled. "Now that we're finally alone, we can talk about all sorts of things. Like your crush on that cute blonde boy, Arnold, you're always fussing about," she teased.

That perked Helga up. "Arnold?!" she exclaimed. "What about Arnold?" she asked.

Olga waved it off. "I think it's just so sweet that you have a wittle crush on him."

Helga grumbled. "For the last time, I do_ not_ have a crush on Arnold," she lied, feeling her cheeks burning.

Olga shook her head. "Ah, ah, ah. You can't fool me, baby sis. I know all the nice things you wrote about him," she said.

Helga froze. "Wait. You just said 'I wrote?' What did you mean by 'I wrote?'" she asked, suddenly very curious.

Olga smiled. It finally felt like they were beginning to get along. "Oh well, just the other day, before the fire happened, I went into your room looking for you and you weren't there, but you had left your closet door open so I went to close it, but then I came across a cute little pile of pretty pink books so I went through them and—"

"You went through my STUFF?" Helga shrieked in horror.

Not understanding her sister's distress, Olga continued. "Oh, Helga you silly! Of course I did. I thought it was just so sweet that my baby sister had such a knack for poetry and so, you see, I just had to share it with our dear mother and she thought it was so cute—"

"You did WHAT?" Helga screamed, her eyes practically bulging out of their sockets. "Crimeny Olga! Who ELSE knows about this?" she exclaimed.

"Well, I didn't want to spoil your little secret so I thought it better if I came and spoke to you about it. That way, it'd be our little secret," Olga casually told her.

Helga narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, except that it's _not_ a secret if you go around telling the whole world about it! The things in my room are for my eyes and my eyes alone, and I thought that even you, my own sister, would respect that. I mean, Crimeny! There was a sign on the door for Cripes sake labeled in MY name, _Hel-ga_, _not Ol-ga_. With all your good grades, I thought you would have no trouble reading that! But nooo, you go into my room without permission and take it upon yourself to just snoop into my things, my LIFE, and take any privacy I had in this household away from me!" Helga yelled. "Crimeny! I don't know who I can trust anymore!"

Olga was taken aback by her sister's anger. "I was only trying to bond with you, baby sister—" she said, tears beginning to smear her mascara.

"No, you weren't trying to bond with me. Because if you were, you would know that I don't appreciate ANYONE going through my stuff. Not you, not Miriam, Especially not BOB, and not even my own friends!" Helga said.

Olga looked to her sister. "Oh baby sister, I don't see why it's so—"

Helga cut her off. "Of course you wouldn't see, Olga. Not when all you're concerned about is your own feelings rather than the rest of us on this earth! Oh and you can stop calling me, 'baby sister.' I'm not your baby sis anymore. In case you haven't noticed, I'm 10 years old!" she said.

Olga sniffled. "Oh Helga! Can you ever forgive me?" she asked.

"Stop the car, Olga," Helga said suddenly.

"But baby sister!" Olga protested

"STOP THE CAR NOW!" Helga shouted.

Instantly, the car screeched to a halt, and Helga got out of the car. She slammed the door behind her.

"I am so out of here," Helga said, storming away in the other direction.

"_Baby Sister_!" Olga screamed out, her voice reaching upper octaves.

Helga ignored her and continued on her way back to the boarding house. Olga didn't pursue.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Back at the boarding house, Arnold placed a pan of leftover salmon omelette on a dumbwaiter. Then, he pulled down on a cord and watched the dumbwaiter raise higher and higher until it stopped at Mr. Smith's room. When he lowered the dumbwaiter back again, the pan had vanished. Arnold crossed the words, "Deliver breakfast to Mr. Smith" off his checklist.

"I guess I better check on all the boarders to make sure they don't get into any fights again," Arnold said, heading up the stairs.

As Arnold made it up the stairs, Oskar came bursting out the door of the Kokoschka residence.

"Oh Arnold! Thank goodness! You've got to help me. Susie won't tell her friend to leave, and Susie won't make me a sandwich like she promised," Oskar said.

"Mr. Kokoschka, you just ate," Arnold reminded him.

"I know! But I'm so hungry!" he explained.

"Then make yourself a sandwich," Arnold said.

"I don't know how eheheh," Oskar said sheepishly.

"You're joking," Arnold stated.

Laughter could be heard emanating from the door. "Arnold, you're my only hope. Make Susie's friend leave," Oskar said.

"But Mr. Kokoschka, I can't do that. Mrs. Kokoschka's free to have anyone she wants over. And besides, sometimes you invite some of your poker buddies over and Susie never complains," Arnold countered.

"That doesn't count. Susie has her friend over all the time," Oskar argued.

"It's only been a day," Arnold responded. "And I don't understand. Why can't you just find something all three of you have in common, so you don't have to feel so excluded?"

"Well, about that . . . ehehe," Oskar replied sheepishly. "Susie kicked me out. She said I was pestering her too much. Can you believe that ehehe?"

'_Oh, I believe it,_' Arnold thought. "Well, have you tried doing something nice for her? Maybe she'll let you in if you're on your best behavior," he suggested.

"That depends. Can I borrow twenty bucks?" Oskar asked.

"Why?" Arnold asked.

"Oh please Arnold! I want to buy a gift for Susie. Then, she will let me in," he said.

Arnold sighed, reaching for his wallet. He pulled out ten bucks. "Here, I'll give you ten bucks. That should be enough," he said.

Oskar snatched the money away gratefully. "Oh, thank you, Arnold. You're a real pal. Don't worry, I'll pay you back," he said.

"Sure, Mr. Kokoschka," Arnold responded tiredly, having a strong feeling that he wouldn't be getting any money back from Mr. Kokoschka. He watched as Mr. Kokoschka took off down the flight of stairs.

He continued on his way until he came to Mr. Hyunh's room. He knocked twice on the door. The door opened immediately.

"Oh Arnold! Welcome! I was just reading a letter from my daughter," said Mr. Hyunh's cheery voice. "Come in!" He widened the door for Arnold to come through.

Arnold put his hand up to politely decline the offer. "No, that's okay. I just wanted to make sure that you were doing okay," he said.

"Oh yes! I am doing quite well. You are a kind boy, Arnold," he responded.

"Thanks. I'll see you later, Mr. Hyunh," Arnold said.

"Yes, see you later!" Mr. Hyunh grinned. "Such kind boy!" he exclaimed again, shutting the door.

Arnold went to the next door, which happened to be Ernie's room. He knocked twice, but didn't get a response. He knocked again and waited a few moments for a response, but didn't get one.

"Guess he's not in," Arnold said. Just as he was about to walk away, the door flew open, revealing a short red-haired man with a dark unibrow. He had large headphones on his head.

"Oh Arnold, it's you. Sorry, couldn't hear you with these babies on," he said, taking off his headphones. "I was listening to a simulation of how it would sound when I finally knock down that old library three blocks up the road with my wrecking ball." He brought the headphones closer to Arnold. "Want to try them on?" he asked.

Arnold waved a hand to politely decline the offer. "No thanks. I just came here to make sure that you were doing okay," he answered.

Ernie shrugged. "Suit yourself. If you change your mind, I'll be here," Ernie said. "Bye Arnold," he said, shutting the door.

"Yeah, bye," Arnold said and then continued down the hallway. "That leaves the Patakis," he said, mentally groaning.

He approached Mr. and Mrs. Pataki's room. He knocked on the door twice, but received no answer. He repeated the knocking a couple more times, but still received no response.

"I guess Mr. Pataki's not in his room," he said. "Either that, or he's ignoring me." He chuckled. "Since Ms. Pataki isn't here, I guess I'll just head over to Grandpa and Grandma's room to give Grandpa a status report."

However, as he passed by Olga's room, he was surprised to find Bob Pataki inside the room, gathering up some things in his arm.

"Mr. Pataki?!" Arnold exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing?" he asked.

Bob jumped, not expecting anyone to barge in on him. He looked to find the source of the voice. "Oh, Arnie. It's you. Startled me there," he said, returning to what he was doing.

"What are you doing in your daughter's room?" Arnold asked.

"Well, first of all, it's not my daughter's room since it's my money that's going into it. And second, buzz off, kid! Quit sticking your nose into my business," he answered, picking up a big box of beepers, including a familiar red open-toed shoe piled on top.

As he started to leave the room, he turned to Arnold. "Hey, take this frilly shoe to the girl's room upstairs, would ya? I don't have time to be climbing so many stairs," he said. Not waiting for Arnold's permission, he tossed him the shoe, which Arnold caught easily. Bob then continued his path to his room.

Arnold looked to the shoe in his hands. _'Wait a minute, I think I've seen this shoe before,_' he thought, eyeing the shoe closely. His eyes widened in realization. _'It's Cecile's shoe! But . . . why is it down here_? _I could've sworn I put Cecile's shoe in the closet upstairs,_' he thought. "Oh well, I guess I can put this back in the closet upstairs," he said, heading down the hallway to his room.

Just as he pulled down the staircase leading to his room, the telephone rang. Arnold walked over to the phone, put the shoe down, and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" he said.

"Hello, this is Mr. Bailey speaking. I work for the Hall of Records. I heard from a source that the Patakis changed residences due to an electric fire that happened at the house yesterday. Is Helga Pataki there by any chance? I would like to speak with her," Mr. Bailey answered.

"Uh, no, she's not here at the moment. She went out to the mall with her sister a little while ago. But I can take a message, if you would like," Arnold responded.

"Okay, let's do that," he said.

"Hold on, let me get a pen," Arnold replied. _'Mr. Bailey? Wasn't he the one who helped Mr. Hyunh reunite with his daughter?'_ he thought to himself. He grabbed the nearest pen. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Very well. When you see Helga Pataki, please let her know that Mr. Bailey from the Hall of Records wants to thank her for gifting her those brand new fancy boots last Christmas, and that it really saved me and my daughter some heartache," he said.

Arnold's eyes widened at the message. _'Helga Pataki gifted his daughter boots?'_ He thought in surprise.

"Hello? Did you get all that?" Mr. Bailey asked on the other line.

Arnold shook his head. "Yeah, it's just . . . I'm sorry, you said you want this message to be delivered to Helga Pataki? _Helga G. Pataki_?!" he emphasized.

"That's the one!" Mr. Bailey answered. "Could you give that message to her?"

Arnold was still in shock. "Yeah . . . yeah, of course. I'll let her know," he replied.

"Great," Mr. Bailey said, and then he hung up. Arnold put the phone back on its hook. He continued to stare blankly at the wall.

Like clockwork, the events from last Christmas were coming back to him. He remembered Gerald and him rushing over to the Hall of Records office, and then talking to Mr. Bailey about locating Mai Hyunh, Mr. Hyunh's long lost daughter, and then Mr. Bailey refusing unless they helped him get his daughter a particular set of boots that was on the rage for pre-teen girls. He remembered him and Gerald not being able to find the boots and thinking that all hope was lost for Mr. Hyunh reuniting with his daughter. But then, he remembered by some miracle Mr. Hyunh's daughter showed up at the Boarding House door and gave Mr. Hyunh and all the other boarders a big surprise. Last, he recalled the words of his best friend, Gerald when he said that it looked like a little angel was looking out for Arnold. Never did he imagine that his little angel would turn out to be Helga G. Pataki!

'_Why didn't she say anything? Why would she keep it a secret from me for all this time?'_ Arnold thought, having trouble bringing himself to terms with the news. He put a hand to his head, looking back to the shoe next to the telephone.

He sighed. "I should probably take this shoe back upstairs," he said, grabbing the shoe and heading up the stairs.

…


	4. Chapter 3 (Part Two)

**Ch. #3: The Story of Helga G. Pataki (Part Two)**

* * *

><p>...<p>

In his room, Arnold opened his closet door and was shocked to find the same shoe sitting exactly where he had left it.

'_If that shoe is there, then whose shoe is this?' _He thought. He remembered Bob saying something about giving the shoe to the girl. _'Could this really be . . . Helga's? And if it is, does that mean—"_

"HEY SHORTMAN! Have you done all your chores yet?!" Phil called up. Arnold shook his head.

"YES, GRANDPA! Hold on, I'll be down in a sec!" Arnold called back. He placed the shoe in the closet with the other one and quickly bounded down the staircase.

…

As Helga opened the familiar green door to the Boarding House, a large group of animals consisting of pigs, dogs, hens, and cats ran out the door. Helga walked into the house after the animals all passed by.

Without a word to anyone, Helga marched up the stairs, fully intending on going up to Arnold's roof and having some peace and quiet to herself. There was no way she was dealing with her sister's emotional turmoil or anyone else for that matter.

When she turned the corner in the hallway, she bumped into Arnold. Literally. They both fell to the ground with a thump.

"OW!" Arnold exclaimed.

"OUCH!" Helga exclaimed.

Opening her eyes, she saw Arnold sitting right in front of her. His eyes were widened.

"Helga?! What are you doing back so soon?! I thought you went with your sister to the mall," He asked.

"Well, I came back, paste-for-brains. Now are you going to help me up or am I going to have to sit here all day?!" she asked.

"Oh, sorry," Arnold apologized, immediately getting up and holding out a hand to help Helga up.

"About time," Helga said, once she was off the ground. "Now, move, I've got things to do," she said, pushing past him.

"Helga, wait! I need to ask you something!" Arnold called after her.

"Yeah, well, I don't feel like answering anything. So there," she said, continuing down the hallway.

He sighed, running a hand through his flaxen hair. "I don't get her at all," he said, more to himself. He followed her.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Oskar knocked on the door of his and Susie's room. "Susie? Can I come in eheheh? I have something to give you," he asked.

The door opened, revealing a miffed Susie. "What is it, Oskar?" she demanded.

"Is Miriam gone?" he asked.

Susie rolled her eyes. "Yes, Oskar. Miriam left to go to her own room. I don't see why having her here is such a problem for you," she answered.

"Never mind about that. Can I come in?" he asked with a sheepish smile.

Susie sighed, opening the door further. "Alright, Oskar. As long as you don't continue to bother me about Miriam, I'll let you in," she said.

Oskar grinned, walking inside the room. Susie closed the door after him, heading over to the ironing board to continue ironing. However, before she could continue, Oskar stopped her, handing a heart-shaped box out to her.

"Here," he said.

Shock appeared on her features. "Oskar . . . what is this?" she asked, eying the box curiously. She came from around the ironing board.

He rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Well, it's uh, chocolates. For you, Susie eheheh."

Her eyebrows raised in disbelief, taking the box from his hands. "I just can't believe it! Did you really do this for me, Oskar?"

Oskar smiled nervously. "Well, I felt kind of bad, see. You do so much and seemed unhappy. And I just don't want to see my Susie sa—" were all the words he was able to get out before arms flew around him.

"Oh Oskar! This is the sweetest and most considerate thing you have ever done for me! I love you so much!" Susie gushed happily. She gave him a peck on the cheek.

Oskar grinned. "I love you too, Susie! Now can you make me a sandwich?"

Susie laughed with tears in her eyes, paying his request no mind. "Oh Oskar!" She exclaimed.

"Oh Susie!" Oskar replied. Then, he broke away from her arms.

"I just remembered something eheheh," Oskar started sheepishly. "I have to go, uh, pick up that umbrella I left at a friend's house after we played a game of poker."

"Well, do you have to leave now? I wanted to open this box of chocolates with you so that we can share them together," Susie replied in confusion.

Oskar grew more flustered. "Eheheh that's okay. I just remembered, I'm not hungry."

Susie was surprised. "You're not hungry? Why, just a moment ago you wanted me to make you a sandwich."

"I changed my mind eheheh. You do so much, Susie. It's not fair." He said, backing away towards the door.

"Well . . . okay, Oskar. If you're really sure. I'll just have to eat these-"she stopped, noticing a rip at the bottom of the package.

Oskar was almost to the door when Susie stopped him. "Oskar . . . why is this box already opened?"

Oskar looked frantically between Susie's stern expression and the door, as if deciding whether to make a break for it or not. "Oh eheheh. Is that so? I must've not noticed that the package was opened ehehehe. I guess I'll just take the box down to the store and have to complain and get a replacement ehehe." He went over to take the package from her hands, but she snatched it away.

"Not so fast . . . I just have to check something first." Susie said, opening the package completely to find no chocolate was in there.

"Why, it's just an empty box!" She exclaimed. Her glare shot to a nervous Oskar.

"You know, I wondered why this box felt so light. Oskar! Did you eat all the chocolate?"

"D-don't be silly, Susie. I would never do such a thing eheheh."

With a frown, Susie got up real close to Oskar, making him backtrack his steps.

"Ah-ha! I knew I smelled chocolate somewhere! Oskar, you have chocolate all over your breath!" She shouted with her hands on her hips.

Oskar gulped, grabbing at his collar.

"Oskar! Explain!" Susie demanded.

Oskar shrank back under her glare. "What? Oh, don't look at me that way, Susie. I was hungry! You know how hard it is for me to stay away from chocolates," he reasoned. "Besides, it's the thought that counts, right ehehehe?"

"Not when that thought's only about yourself!" Susie yelled. Then, suddenly she ceased her tirade. Tears fell from her eyes. "I knew it was too good to be true! Oh Oskar, why can't you think about someone other than yourself for once!" She cried.

Oskar saw this as his opportunity to make his escape. He ran to the door, grabbing the doorknob to open it.

Susie stopped, hearing the creak in the door. Her eyes immediately lit with fire. "Not so fast . . . ." She shouted, causing a cowering Oskar to glance her way.

In her arms, Susie held a large lamp. "You forgot this!" She yelled, hurling the lamp in his direction.

Oskar yelped, thrusting the door open and barely dodging the lamp before it crashed against the wall after him. He turned back to see Susie lifting a pile of dishes.

He slammed the door. Crashes of many dishes followed.

"GET BACK HERE! I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET!" Susie's voice roared behind the door.

Oskar made a break down the hallway but not before Susie had a chance to thrust open the door and throw a chair and more dishes after him.

A couple of plates hit him in the back of his head, but he dared not turn back.

"AND STAY OUT!" Susie ordered after him, watching him disappear behind the stairs.

She slammed the door.

* * *

><p>…<p>

On Arnold's roof, Helga was reclined on a white beach chair overlooking the city below. The sound of cars could be heard whizzing past on the street with occasional shouts of kids playing nearby, and music pumping from people's cars or backyards. It somehow felt peaceful to Helga as she closed her eyes.

Arnold climbed up to the roof and saw Helga reclined on a chair. He took the chair beside her, looking out at the city before them.

"This is my favorite place to come when I feel like I need a break from everything," he said.

Helga's eyes flew open in mild surprise, looking over at him.

Arnold kept his eyes glued to the horizon. The sun was just beginning to set. "I like it up here because it has such a great view, and it's kind of peaceful out here," he said. He gave a sheepish smile, looking over at Helga. "I guess that sounds lame, huh?" he asked.

"No, actually, it sounds kind of nice," she said.

Arnold gave her his half-lidded smile. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he replied. The two didn't say anything for a while as they both turned to look at the sun setting.

Finally, Arnold broke the silence. "Helga, I know you don't want to talk about it, but can you please tell me why you came home early without your sister?" he asked. "I just want to help."

Helga rolled her eyes. "Oh Arnold. Always wanting to go around helping everybody. Do you ever give it a rest?" she asked.

He thought about it for a moment. "No, I guess not. It's hard to stop doing something that's part of who you are," he answered.

Helga sat up. "Fine. You want to know what's wrong? Well, listen well, because I'm about to tell you the whole story. Olga and I got into an argument. There. I said it," she said with a hmph.

"Why?" Arnold asked.

"Because Olga doesn't know how to keep her nose out of my business. I mean, how would _you_ feel if someone just casually decided to go through your things without your permission?" Helga asked.

Arnold gave her a pointed look.

Helga's eyes widened, realizing the irony from earlier. "Oh right . . . ." she said.

Arnold sighed. "Look, I'm not going to say that it was right of your sister to go through your things without your permission, because it wasn't, but I will say that knowing your sister, I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt you when she went through your things. I'm sure she only wanted to learn more about you and get closer to you because she didn't know what else to do or she was afraid of confronting you directly about it," he explained. "I can tell your sister loves you very much, and that she's probably heartbroken right now that she upset you."

"Yeah, and probably bawling her eyes out," Helga remarked.

"And probably bawling her eyes out," Arnold agreed. "The point is, she's your only sister and sisters are supposed to stick with each other thick and thin. And even if you don't need her, Helga, I'm sure she needs you. So, what do you say? Are you going to speak with your sister now?" he asked.

"Hmm . . . I'll think about it," Helga said, reclining back into her chair.

Arnold sighed. "Okay, Helga. You do what you want. Just know that your sister's probably hurting right now and I'm sure you and your sister could be a lot closer, if you allowed it," he said, climbing down the stairs.

Helga sighed, considering what Arnold had said. _'Hmm . . . to talk to Olga or not to talk to Olga, that is the question,'_ she thought.

…

In Olga's room, Helga found Olga laying on her bed with her head in her pillow.

"Hey Olga . . . can we talk?" Helga asked.

Olga's eyes widened, immediately picking her head up from the pillow. "Oh Helga! I'm so sorry about what happened earlier! I thought things through and I realize I shouldn't have—"

Helga put a hand up, halting her. "It's okay, Olga. I forgive you. We all make mistakes," she said. "And besides, it wouldn't be fair for me to continue blaming you when I kind of got caught doing the same thing earlier."

Olga gave a small smile, wiping the tears from her red eyes. "Really Helga?" she asked.

"Really," Helga confirmed with a smile, "Just don't let it become a habit."

"Okay, Helga. I won't," Olga said, nodding.

"And also," Helga started, rubbing the back of her neck. "I kind of want to become better sisters too and uh, you know, bond and stuff." She said.

Olga squealed, causing Helga to grit her teeth in annoyance.

"Okay, you can't do that around me anymore if you want this to work," she replied.

"Uh-huh. Whatever you say, baby sis," Olga said.

The two embraced tightly. When they released, Helga asked, "So, uh, want to watch a movie? And before you ask, no, not your award-winning film. I want to watch something we both can enjoy."

"How about the _Titanic_?" Olga asked with hopeful eyes.

Helga shrugged. "Okay, I'm good with that," she said as she moved to sit on the bed beside Olga.

Unbeknownst to Helga, Arnold watched the scene from a distance, a half-lidded smile on his face.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Later that evening, the boarders were once again seated at the dining room table. Phil looked to Arnold.

"So, Arnold, you all set for your date tonight with what's her face?" he asked with a sly grin.

"_Grandpa_ . . . I already told you that her name is Lila, and yeah, I think so. I'm just feeling a little nervous. This is the first time she's actually ever asked me to hang out with her," he replied.

"Oh, not to worry, Shortman. I'm sure everything will turn out alright," Phil responding, biting into a dinner roll. He paused to think it over. "Well, that or . . . everything will turn out horribly wrong because you humiliate her at the movies, she never speaks to you again, and then, before you know it, you're forced to run away and disguise yourself as a hobo, never to return again," he said, taking another bite of his bread.

Arnold suddenly felt sick. "Um, would you excuse me for a moment?" he asked before getting up and running to the restroom to puke his guts out.

Phil took another bite of his dinner roll. "You see, I told you Pookie not to put those raspberries in that space food for breakfast," he said.

"Nutrition is good for you," Gertie replied with a wink. She was currently dressed in a blue trench coat with a British hat. A wooden rifle sat underneath the table.

Meanwhile, Helga's mind was reeling at the thought of Arnold's date with Lila that evening. _'Oh brother. Lila this, Lila that. Like she's the most perfect being in the world. Well, I'm going to do a thing or two to teach Lila she doesn't know who she's messing with_,' she thought.

Arnold came back to the table, taking his seat beside Helga. "Ugh, this date might be harder than I thought," he said, holding his stomach.

"I don't get why you're so nervous all of a sudden, Football Head. Sheesh, it's only _Lila_," Helga said, drawing out Lila's name in a mocking tone.

"Well, it's a pretty big deal to me," he said.

Helga narrowed her eyes. "Why? I thought it wasn't a _date-date_," she argued.

"It's not," Arnold said quickly with a blush. "I just, don't want her to think that we can't ever hang out as friends since it's the first time she's ever asked to see a movie with me," he explained.

"Uh-huh," Helga said, her tone disbelieving. "I'm sure Lila will be _ever so interested_ in hanging out as just friends once she sees you in that black suit you're wearing," she accused.

Arnold's blushed deeper. "I thought it couldn't hurt to look nice," he said, shrugging.

"Arnold, give it up already. We both know you're trying to win Lila over so that she changes her mind about going out with her," she said.

He sighed. "Okay, fine. Maybe I wanted to impress her a bit," he admitted. "But not for the reason you think, Helga. It's just that well, yesterday, Lila told me that she thought I was so brave to go into that fire to rescue you, and she seemed to think I was some charming guy. I guess I felt that if I met her expectations of a charming guy, then she'd be willing to hang out with me more," he said.

Helga rolled her eyes. "But why would you want to hang out with her? She's revoltingly sweet all. the. time," she emphasized.

"She's also my friend, and I want things to be good between us," he said. "And besides, some people find being sweet kind of endearing." He winked at her.

Helga took a stab of a meatball in her spaghetti. "Well, not me," she huffed.

Arnold gave her a half-lidded smile. "Sure, Helga. Whatever you say," he said.

Across from the table, Oskar begged Susie. "Hey Susie . . . make me a sandwich!"

"We're at dinner now, Oscar . . . ." Susie replied, trying to ignore him.

"Which is why you should make me a sandwich ehehehe," he said.

Susie rolled her eyes. "Oh Oscar . . . ." she said.

"What? Oh come on, Susie. I'm starving. Make me a sandwich."

"Oscar, you have plenty of other food here. You can have a sandwich later."

"Aw! But that's what you always say! You never make me a sandwich and besides, there's never enough food to go around!" Oskar complained.

"That's because you keep taking it all, you thieving oaf!" Ernie argued.

"Well . . . maybe if Susie made me a sandwich, I wouldn't be so hungry eheheheh."

"Oh Oscar . . . ."

"Oh brother . . . ." Helga thought as she rolled her eyes. "Could things get any MORE strange?"

"HOORAY FOR THE RED, WHITE, AND BLUE!" Gertie suddenly sang as she marched while holding a wooden rifle.

"POOKIE! What have I told you about marching around the house in that blue uniform?" Phil argued, getting up to take the rifle out of her hands, which Gertie quickly averted.

"Ahahaha catch me if you can, private!" She said as she dodged Phil, jabbed him in the stomach with the butt of her rifle, and ran out of the dining room.

"Ooh! Come back here, you crazy old bird!" Phil called, chasing after her.

Maniacal laughter could be heard in the hallways.

"Guess I spoke too soon . . . ." Helga muttered.

"Relax, Helga . . . I know my family can be a little . . . ." Arnold struggled to find the right word.

"Strange? Quirky? Crazy? Over the top?" Helga offered.

". . .eccentric, but they're really not all that bad. You'll get used to it after a while, "Arnold finished.

"Huh. Get used to THIS?" Helga emphasized. Then, she sighed, giving a bored look again. "Ehh . . . worth a shot . . . at least it's not as bad as Miss Perfect going on about all her awards." She paused to take a bite of her spaghetti. "Plus, it beats cable!"

* * *

><p>…<p>

Arnold stood in front of the door to Lila's house. He glanced at his watch. 6:58 p.m. He gulped once, before ringing the doorbell.

"Just a minute!" He heard a man's voice call from behind the door. A few moments later, the door opened, revealing a middle-aged red haired man in a green vest. "Why, hello! What can I do you for?" he asked in a warm tone.

"Hi. I'm, uh, Arnold. I'm here to pick up Lila for our date tonight," he explained.

The man's eyes lit up, his smile becoming broader. "Oh Arnold! So nice to finally meet you! I should've guessed it by that smashing suit and tie you're wearing. I heard a lot about you from Lila. You're the one who rescued a classmate from that burning building yesterday. Pretty brave of you!" he said.

"I was just doing what I felt was right at the time, sir," Arnold explained truthfully.

"Ah, yes. I can see that you are as modest as Lila tells me," he said. Then, he put a hand to his head. "Oh! Silly me, leaving you standing outside the door like that. Come on in! Lila will be down in a second." He opened the door wider, allowing Arnold to come through.

"Uh, thanks, Mr. Sawyer," Arnold said, walking past him and stepping into the quaint house.

Closing the door after Arnold, Mr. Sawyer waved him off. "Oh, no need to be so formal, Arnold! You are my daughter's date, after all. Call me Dave," he said, holding a hand out to him.

Feeling a bit awkward, Arnold hesitantly took Dave's hand and shook it. "Okay . . . uh, Dave," he replied.

Dave laughed. "Well, don't just stand there. Come on, let's head over to the living room," he said, beckoning Arnold to follow him.

Arnold followed him into the living room, but almost jumped in surprise when he saw it. The room looked was barren, save for two chairs facing each other at the center of the room.

"Sorry for not being better prepared. Lila and I haven't really had company since—" he paused, his face dropping. "Well, since Lila's mother died from leukemia two years back," he explained with a sigh as he pulled out a collapsible chair from a broom closet.

Arnold immediately felt out of place. "I'm really sorry to hear that," he said sympathetically.

Dave gave another sigh, sitting down in one of the chairs and motioning Arnold to take a seat next to him. Arnold did as offered. "Yeah, I still miss her, even to this day . . . but I don't think anyone missed her more than Lila. She loved her mother very much and when she died . . . well, let's just say that things became hard pretty fast. The girl wouldn't even leave her room for weeks. We had to move away to get away from all the memories. But even so, she'll always have a place in our hearts," he answered. He looked at Arnold. "Lila's a strong girl. She's always tries hard to have another cheer for the both us. In many ways, she's just like her mother."

Arnold didn't know how to respond. He never knew how hard things had been on Lila. He felt bad for considering calling the date off when Gerald set them up.

Seeing Arnold's grim expression, Dave waved it off. "Oh! Please forgive me for being such a terrible host. What on earth am I doing bringing you down on such a happy occasion like this? Lila would chastise me if she knew I brought this up with you. Let's talk about something a little more positive. Tell me . . . how are things with your family at the boarding house?"

Arnold instantly felt relieved switching subjects. "They're doing okay. Grandma's just as quirky as ever, and grandpa still doesn't trust raspberries," he said, chuckling a bit.

Dave's smile brightened, nodding his head. "I see. I bet you and your parents have a lot to deal with keeping your grandparents in order," he said laughing.

That stopped Arnold right there. His eyes widened. His mouth suddenly felt dry. He lowered his head, averting his eyes. It was hard being reminded of his parents' absence.

Dave's smile fell when he noticed how silent Arnold became. He waved his arms in alarm. "Oh, forgive me! I didn't realize—"

"_Arnold_," a young girl's voice cut in, causing Arnold and Dave's head to turn their heads in the voice's direction.

Lila stood at the top of the stairs in a beautiful green dress, her red hair cascading off her shoulders. Her face held a dazzling smile as she stepped down the stairs.

"Arnold, I'm so glad you made it," she said.

Arnold stood up, his eyes widening in surprise before his mouth moved into a lopsided grin.

"Lila, you look positively stunning!" Dave exclaimed from beside Arnold.

"Oh, thank you, daddy," Lila chirped in glee.

Arnold walked up to Lila, holding out a hand to escort her down the staircase. Lila giggled taking it.

"Lila . . . you look really nice. I'm really looking forward to our night together," Arnold said.

"Oh Arnold! You're ever so charming," she responded, eating it up.

"Well, I can see you two youngsters are eager to get a jump on your date. Let me not get in your way. I'll just escort you two love-birds to the front door," Dave said, motioning them to follow. Arnold and Lila exchanged glances before following after Dave.

A few moments later, Dave was ushering them out the front door. "Well, you two take care! Be sure to be back by 10 p.m. tonight," he said cheerfully. Then, with a small frown, he spoke directly to Arnold. "Arnold, can I speak to you for a moment?" he asked.

Arnold looked to Lila, but Lila shrugged. "Uh, sure, Mr. Sawye—I mean, _Dave_," Arnold replied, following Dave to a corner away from Lila.

Arnold looked to Dave expectantly. He watched as Dave took a deep breath before saying what was on his mind. "Arnold, I just want to apologize for what I said earlier about your parents. I realize that it may have been a touchy subject for you, and I shouldn't have pried you about it. I hope you don't allow what I said to ruin your night with my daughter. I can tell she likes you a lot, and I believe she picked a good one," Dave said.

"It's . . . okay, Dave. You don't have to apologize. You didn't know. You just . . . you just caught me off guard is all. But I appreciate you making sure that I was alright," Arnold replied.

Dave smiled, nodding. "Well, okay. You be sure to let me know if you ever need anything, Arnold," he said.

Arnold smiled. "Will do, sir," he said, before heading off with Lila towards the movies. Dave shut the door behind them.

* * *

><p>…<p>

"Crimeny! Where are they?! It's been a whole hour! I figured they'd be at the movies by now," Helga griped from behind a trash can right outside the theatre. Her attire consisted of a black sweater, a black wool hat, and two black streaks on both sides of her cheeks. She was just about to check her watch again when a familiar oblong-shaped head appeared before her eyes.

"Finally! They're here!" Helga exclaimed in relief. Then, her face wore a sinister smile. "Time to put phase one of _Operation: Sabotage Arnold's date_ into motion," she said, looking to the large bucket and red toolbox beside her. She began laughing maniacally until a heavy breathing sound from behind interrupted her. Helga's fist flew backwards on instinct, smashing into the face of nerdy Brainy. He gave her a goofy grin before falling to the ground, unconscious. Helga ignored him, setting her sights back to the couple before her.

…

Arnold and Lila were waiting in line to get movie tickets. Arnold glanced off to the side and saw movie posters lined up against the wall. He looked to the particularly scary poster with blood splatter in the background beside the "Enchanted Bunnies II" poster. He tapped on Lila's shoulder, causing her to turn around and look at him. "Hey Lila? Are you sure you still want to see, 'Enchanted Bunnies II?' Because 'Evil Twin III' is showing here too as a new release, and I've heard it's supposed to be a pretty good movie," he said, desperately looking for an out from seeing the latter movie.

Lila smiled. "Oh yes, Arnold! I'm ever so sure. 'Enchanted Bunnies' is just my oh so favorite series, and scary movies like that give me the worst nightmares and heebie jeebies," she answered.

"Oh, um, okay. Great," he replied, forcing a smile. He groaned internally. He was forced to watch the people in front of him talk about how excited they were to be among the first to see "Evil Twin III", and how everyone is going to be talking about it later. He hid his face when he saw Harold, Stinky, and Sid five people ahead of them, asking for movie tickets to see, "Evil Twin III."

* * *

><p>…<p>

When he and Lila arrived at the theatre for "Enchanted Bunnies II", Arnold wasn't surprised to find the room empty. Not even little kids were present. That didn't seem to faze Lila though.

"Oh Arnold! This is ever so perfect! It's like we have our very own theatre, just for the two of us," she exclaimed.

Seeing how happy it made Lila, Arnold decided to look to the bright side of things. "Yeah, at least there won't be anyone here to bother us," he agreed.

"Want to sit in the middle row?" Lila asked.

"Yeah, that's fine," he said. The two went over to the middle row of seats and sat down. They both set down their drinks down in the cup holders beside them, and Lila held out a big bag of popcorn out to Arnold, but Arnold shook his head.

"No thanks," he said, and Lila shrugged, bringing the bag back to her lap. Soon enough, the previews starting rolling.

Arnold looked to his watch. The time showed 8:15 p.m. "Say Lila," he whispered, getting her attention. "What's the running time of this movie?" he asked.

She waved it off. "Oh, not long at all. It's only three and half hours," she said. Then, she sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize the movie would be a lot shorter than the other two movies," she noted solemnly.

At that moment, Arnold would've uttered a thousand praises under his breath, had it not been for the sinking feeling that he still had to sit through a three hour movie. Correction: a _three and a half hour_ movie.

So instead, Arnold just smiled reassuringly and said, "It's okay, Lila. I'm sure it will be a good movie anyways."

Lila smiled in return before turning back to the previews. Arnold did the same, right as the opening credits of the movie appeared on screen.

…

In the theatre bathroom, Helga was using the wrench from the red toolbox she received from Ernie to unscrew the pipes to each of the three sinks in the room. She had just finished unscrewing the last one when the bathroom door opened, revealing a young brunette woman holding a small girl's hand. Helga froze as the two walked in and stopped to stare at her.

"Um, little girl, what are you doing?" the woman asked.

Helga looked to the wrench in her hands and then back to the confused woman standing in front of her. "What's it look like I'm doing? I'm minding my _own_ business. How about you do the same," she huffed. With that, she picked up her toolbox and stormed out of the bathroom.

The girl and her mother looked to each other in shock when the door opened again, revealing Helga. "Oh, and I wouldn't use the sinks. They have a leak in them," she said before shutting the door again.

The young girl looked to her mother. "Mommy, who was that strange girl?" she asked.

"I'm not so sure I want to know," her mother replied.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Meanwhile, Helga had just walked into the only theatre room showing "Enchanted Bunnies II." In one hand, she held a large bucket. In the other, she held the red toolbox. Seeing her targets, she stealthily used the cover of the shadows as she sat in the seat behind Lila. Her actions went unnoticed by Arnold and Lila. She quietly placed the toolbox and bucket on the floor as she slunk down in her seat, carefully biding her time. As the movie played on, it wasn't long before she found herself fast asleep.

…

Arnold wasn't much better off. He closed his eyes.

"Oh Arnold, doesn't she just look ever so adorable?" Lila said, referring to the pink bunny with big blue eyes nibbling on a carrot on screen.

Arnold's eyes flew open. "Huh?" He said, not knowing what she said. "Uh, yeah, that's great, Lila . . ." He replied, tiredly.

He looked at his watch. 8:30 p.m. It had only been fifteen minutes since the movie began. He sighed deeply. _'Great, just great . . .'_ He thought.

Ten more minutes into the movie, Arnold couldn't take it anymore. How the film makers managed to create another movie about several magical bunnies hopping in a green meadow, Arnold would never know.

_'Ugh. I don't know if I can last through this movie much longer,'_ He thought. He looked over to the girl next to him with her eyes glued to the screen as she emptied a fist full of popcorn into her mouth. He tapped her lightly on the shoulder, getting her attention.

"Uh, Lila? I . . . have to go to the bathroom. I'll be back soon," he whispered.

"Huh? Oh, uh, sure Arnold. Hurry back! I'm ever so sure the movie's just getting to the oh so best part," she said before turning back to the movie.

"Err, right," Arnold said before maneuvering out of the dark theatre. Helga opened her eyes just in time to see an oblong-shaped head leave the room. Lila was all alone now.

Helga shook her head awake. "Eureka! He's gone. Now's my chance," Helga whispered happily. She picked up the bucket on the ground, opening the lid to reveal over a hundred tiny ants crawling in the bucket that received from Nadine, no questions asked. As Helga watched Lila focused on the screen before her, she contemplated whether she should pour the buckets on her head. However, after some careful consideration, she decided against it as she did not want to incriminate herself. So instead, she decided on something a little less drastic. Careful not to be seen, Helga slowly dumped the ants into the bag of popcorn in Lila's lap. Then, she quickly sunk down in the seat behind Lila.

Through the cracks of the seats, Helga watched Lila's hand reach into the bag of popcorn. Suddenly, she saw Lila's hand freeze, and then a few seconds later, she heard a high-pitched scream.

"ANTS!" Lila shrieked, jumping out of her seat. She frantically tried to brush the ants off while jumping in place. She looked completely terrified, her eyes were widened and her face completely pale. Ants were crawling all over her entire body. She ran out of the room, crying.

Helga doubled over, laughing. "Too easy," she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "I guess I better call Pheebs, and let her know the deets," she said, exiting out the backdoor of the theatre.

…

In the girl's bathroom, Lila had just gotten the last of the ants off. She went to the sink and viewed herself in the mirror. Her eyes were still red and puffy from crying earlier. She tried to turn on the faucet to wash her face off, but no water would come. Then, suddenly, there was a gurgling sound before water burst from one of the pipes and all over Lila's green dress, drenching her. Lila squealed in alarm, and looked back at her reflection. She looked like a drowning puppy. Tears slid down her face as she ran out of the bathroom, covering her face. She was almost to the outside doors when she bumped into Arnold, just as he was coming through them.

Lila gave a high-pitched scream in surprise. Arnold grew concerned once he got a look of Lila and her soaked clothes.

"Lila? What's going on? Why are you covered in water?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.

"Arnold, I just want to go home. I'm afraid I'm having an ever so bad day," she replied miserably.

"Are you okay? What happened?" he asked, still not quite understanding.

"Arnold, _please_," she begged, her green eyes teary as she peered up at him. "Not here. I don't want to talk about it."

He nodded. "Okay, let's go home," he agreed. Just as they were about to leave, Arnold heard Helga's voice coming from an alley.

…

"—and that's when little Miss Ray of Sunshine started freaking out and screaming, 'AHH! ANTS!' and running off like someone was chasing her. You should've seen her face, Pheebs. It was priceless. I almost wish I could've seen the look on her face when she realized that the faucets weren't working right and got drenched because of it. Man, if I would've known that pouring some ants into Lila's popcorn and unscrewing some bathroom pipes would stop little Miss Perfect right in her dainty tracks, I would've done it a long time ago!" Helga exclaimed, laughing. Helga wiped a few stray tears. "Well, I'll have to call you back, Pheebs. I think I'm going to head over to Slausen's in a little while, and grab some ice cream to celebrate," she said, hanging up. She began to walk out of the alley when she bumped into Arnold and Lila glaring back at her.

"_Helga_!" Arnold said.

"A-Arnold!" Helga exclaimed in surprise. "W-what are you doing here?" she asked.

"Enough, _Helga_. We heard everything. I can't believe you would do something like this. You want to hurt me? Fine. But you didn't have to go as far as to ruin Lila's night just to get back at me," he said.

Helga tried to explain. "Arnold, wait. You don't understand. I—"

"—that's right. I _don't_ understand. I don't understand how I could've ever believed that you actually had a good side underneath that front of anger you always put us through. I thought there was something there. Especially when—" he paused, trying to collect himself. "—especially when I saw that shoe you had in your room," he said. Helga's eyes widened.

He continued. "I can't believe . . . —I wanted to believe . . . —I thought you were . . . —That you might've been—" he shook his head. "It doesn't matter. I was wrong. The truth is, deep down, you're nothing but a bully who gets joy out of hurting others," he said.

He kept his green eyes levelled with hers. "Earlier you said you didn't want to speak to me again. Well, I guess you got what you wanted. Because I don't _ever_ want to speak to you again," he said. "Come on, Lila. Let's get out of here." With that, he turned to leave.

Lila looked to the blonde girl standing before her and then shook her head. She left with Arnold.

Helga was left standing there alone. _'My love . . . oh, what have I done?' _She thought as tears slid down her cheeks. She looked on as the couple's form slowly became smaller as they got further away. _'Come back . . . come back . . .' _her mind begged. _'I'm lost without you.' _Her eyes focused on the couple's hands intertwined as they moved further away until they were gone. She sat down and pulled her knees to her chest. There, in the dark alley, she wept quietly to herself.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Lila could tell something was amiss the moment they left Helga standing there alone in the dark alley. Arnold didn't speak the whole way back to Lila's house, even as Lila tried to lighten the mood with some of her jokes. When they reached her stoop, Lila stopped, turning around to face him. "Gosh Arnold, thank you ever so much for being my date tonight," she said, smiling. Then, her smile fell a little. "I'm ever so sorry that tonight didn't turn out the way you wanted it to with Helga. If it makes you feel any better, I bet she misses you more than anything right now," she said.

Arnold shook his head. "It's okay, Lila. You don't have to apologize or defend her. What Helga did back there was way out-of-line," he said. Then, he said a little glumly. "I can't believe I ever considered her a friend."

Lila frowned, observing him carefully for a moment before a broad smile appeared on her face. "Arnold, do you want me to let you in on a little secret?" she asked.

He looked up in surprise. "Huh? Uh, sure, Lila. What is it?" he asked.

She gave him a sly look. "I know you still like her," she whispered quietly.

At that, Arnold's green eyes widened, causing Lila to giggle. "I'm not blind, you know. I notice things, and when you look at her, I can definitely tell that something's there."

Arnold waved his hands. "That's not true! I—"

"_Arnold_," Lila cut in. "I can tell you're lying."

That stopped him.

"Arnold, I'm ever so certain that you should forgive Helga. I forgive her. I don't think she was doing this to be mean. I mean, don't get me wrong. It _was _mean, just ever so mean, but I don't think she meant it that way. I think she was just trying to do what she felt would allow her to become closer to you, and that I was kind of in the way of that," Lila said, a little quietly on the last part.

"Lila, you saw what happened. I'm not going to let her think that she can just push anyone she wants around without there being any consequences," he responded.

"Then show her another way," she replied.

"It's not that easy. Helga never listens to anything I say," he explained.

"Then _make_ her listen," Lila answered. "Arnold, I'm ever so sure you have more power over her than you realize. She trusts you, and now you have to trust yourself enough to give her a chance. Can you do that?"

He looked away. "I'm not sure I can," he said.

Following those words, Lila moved closer to him and gave him a peck on the cheek. "You're Arnold. Of course you can," she whispered before she headed for the door.

Arnold placed a hand on the cheek where Lila kissed him. He watched Lila walk up the stairs and open her door, his thoughts swirling on what he would say to Helga.

Lila turned back towards Arnold from the doorway, giving him a broad smile. She waved to him. "Bye Arnold! Thank you just ever so much for our wonderful date!" she exclaimed and then closed the door behind her.

"Yeah . . . bye . . . Lila . . ." he said quietly. Then, he turned around and headed for the Boarding House.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Helga quietly opened the door to the Boarding House, ignoring the cats, dogs, hens, and pigs that shot past her.

"Baby sis, where have you been? We're about to show Bennington college's award-winning film, _Carmen_," Olga called out from the living room.

Helga kept her head down, saying nothing as she headed for the stairs.

" . . . Baby sis?" she heard her sister ask from behind her once she reached the stairs.

Helga ascended the stairs, not saying a word.

"Baby sis?! What's wrong? Did you want to talk about it?" Olga asked.

When Helga wouldn't stop climbing, Olga marched up the stairs after her, catching her arm.

"Helga, are you—"

"Leave me alone," Helga cut in.

"Huh?" Olga said in surprise.

"I said, '_LEAVE ME ALONE!'_ I don't want to talk about it. Stop butting into my business!" Helga shouted, yanking her arm out of her sister's grasp and bounding up the stairs.

"Baby sis!" Olga cried helplessly after her.

…

Half an hour later, Helga heard a knocking on the door. She was currently lying on the red sofa in Arnold's room, absentmindedly writing in a notebook her sister bought her while Olga was at the mall. Her hand stopped writing, her eyes glaring at the door.

"Go away, Olga! I already told you that I just want to be alone," Helga called out.

"Err, no. Actually, it's me, Arnold," came Arnold's sheepish voice from behind the door.

She froze. "ARNOLD?!" she exclaimed before jumping up and running to the door. She opened it, revealing a blonde boy wearing a sheepish smile.

"W-what are you doing here?" she asked.

He raised an eyebrow. "Well, this is kind of my room," he answered.

"Oh," Helga said, an embarrassed blush reaching her cheeks. "Right. I was just leaving," she said, walking back to the sofa. With that, she began to pack her things.

Meanwhile, Arnold tried to make conversation. "So," he started. "Everyone says that they tried coming up here, but you didn't want to be disturbed?" he asked.

"Yep," Helga said, not looking up.

It was silent for a few moments before Arnold caught sight of a pink notebook lying open on the red couch. "So . . . your sister get that for you?" he asked.

Helga stopped, looking to what he was referring to. "What? Oh this? Yeah, she got it for me alright. Lovable oaf," she responded.

"Oh . . . good," he replied awkwardly. "Have you been writing in it?"

"What? Me? Writing?" she asked in shock. "Uh, no. This is just- . . . just a drawing heh heh." She chuckled nervously. The last thing she wanted him to know was that she had been writing about him.

He arched a brow. "A drawing with words?" he asked in disbelief.

Helga rubbed her neck sheepishly. "Uh, yeah, I just wanted to—oh, what's the use? You caught me. I am writing something. Call it a temporary escape," she answered honestly.

Arnold's eyes widened in amazement. "Wow, Helga. I didn't know you write.

"Yeah, well . . . you're the only one who has to know," she replied, returning to her packing.

"Can I see what you've written?" he asked, out of curiosity.

Helga stopped. "I . . . don't think that's a good idea. It's a bit . . . personal," she said, looking off to the side.

"Oh," he said in disappointment. "Well, how about I—"

"_Arnold_," Helga cut in, standing up to face him. "Not to ruin whatever _this _is, but why exactly are you talking to me?" she asked, catching him off guard. "I-I thought you hated me," she added quietly.

He took a deep breath. "I don't hate you, Helga. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that earlier. I was just hurt and . . . and angry because I thought we were finally getting along and becoming good friends," he said honestly. Then, his eyes narrowed. "But then you go and sabotage the only chance I ever had to become better friends with Lila. I don't get it. What did I ever do to make you so angry at me?!" When Helga's face gave a sad look, he took another deep breath to calm himself. "Again, sorry for getting so angry earlier. That's usually not like me," he said.

"But you had _every_ right to be angry. After all, I did ruin your date with Lila," she argued.

He furrowed his eyebrows, catching her accusation. "Helga, _stop_ saying it was a date. I already told you it wasn't. I thought you trusted me," he said.

Helga said nothing, looking away.

"I guess I thought wrong then," he answered quietly.

"You didn't," Helga said suddenly, causing him to look up in surprise. "I do trust you, but it's just . . . when you seemed so happy to be hanging out with Lila, I-I got scared and . . . I guess I just reacted the best way I knew how." She looked away, her cheeks becoming red.

At this revelation, Arnold's face held a look of surprise, before he shook his head, smiling. "Helga, you have nothing to be jealous about. I have no feelings for Lila whatsoever. We're just friends," he said with a chuckle.

Helga looked like she had the air punched out of her. "J-Jealous? W-Who said anything about me being _jealous_, Football Head?!" she argued.

Arnold grinned. "You _know_," he interjected. "Come to think of it, if you did _like-like me_ that would explain a lot of things."

Helga blushed, flabbergasted. "I-I . . . don't be stupid. Why would someone like me _like-like_ someone like you?" she asked.

"You're right. It would be pretty surprising," he agreed. "But maybe some surprises aren't so bad. Like the time you surprised me when I heard you gifted your snow boots to Mr. Bailey's daughter last Christmas."

Helga gasped. "W-Who told you?" she asked.

"Mr. Bailey," Arnold casually stated. "He left a message saying that he wanted to thank a certain _Helga G. Pataki _for those boots you gifted to his daughter last Christmas." Then, he smiled. "Thanks, Helga."

"W-What are you thanking _me_ for?" she argued. _'He doesn't know the truth, does he?'_ she thought.

"You may not have realized this, Helga, but you didn't just help Mr. Bailey's daughter that day. You see, Gerald and I were looking everywhere for those boots so that Mr. Bailey would give us the information to find Mr. Hyunh's long-lost daughter. But we couldn't find any boots that were still in stock because they were so popular. Because you gifted those boots to Mr. Bailey's daughter, he was willing to help us find Mr. Hyunh's daughter. So thank you. For helping us," he explained with a smile.

"Don't be, uh, silly, Football Head. Why would _I_ want to _help _you? I was just, uh . . . doing some community service. Yeah, that's it! Community service heh, heh . . . Whoo! Is it getting hot in here?" Helga said, tugging on the collar of her shirt. She started backing away from him slowly. "Maybe I'll just turn on the A/C downstairs and—"

She was already in the middle of turning the doorknob to Arnold's room when she felt a warm hand grab her arm firmly. Hesitantly, she turned around to face Arnold.

He was not amused.

"Geez, uh, what's the big idea stopping me like that, Football Head heh, heh?" She asked, nervously. She tried to make her anger sound convincing, but she was failing miserably and he could tell.

She froze when Arnold frowned and shook his head disapprovingly.

"Helga, first of all, the thermostat's over there." He said, gesturing to the wall right beside her.

"Oh! Uh, heh, heh, is that, uh, so?" Helga responded, visibly flustered. _'Crimeny, I was hoping he wouldn't notice. Now how am I supposed to get out of this? Okay, relax Helga, old girl. Think. Maybe there's a chance that you can convince him that this isn't real. Yeah, that'll work. After all, he's still the same dense Football Head we all know and love, right?' _

Her thoughts ceased when she heard Arnold's voice again.

"Yeah . . . it's always been there," he started casually. Then, he narrowed his eyes at her. "But you knew that already, didn't you, Helga? Or should I say . . . _Cecile_?"

Helga's heart stopped. _'He knew about that too? But how? I . . . .'_

Her eyes widened in realization.

'_My shoe! He must've found it!'_

Helga's reactions only confirmed Arnold's suspicions. _'I knew it! So it really was her after all!_' He thought with a smug smile.

Helga felt like she was backed into a corner. What the heck was she supposed to say to that? She racked her brain for any plausible response she could give Arnold—anything at all.

"I . . . uh . . . ." Helga started, looking anywhere, but his deep sea-green eyes.

"You . . . ." Arnold prompted, very amused.

Fire instantly returned to Helga's blue eyes. _'He's actually enjoying this! Why, the nerve of that little . . . .'_ She yanked her hand out of his grasp, surprising Arnold.

"So . . . so what, Arnoldo? You gonna sue me for happening to have some of the same shoes as that little girl pal of yours?" Helga responded triumphantly. "So, we shop at the same shoe store. Big deal. It's not as if her shoes were the only kind in the world. So enough with the game of 20 questions already. Sheesh, what is this? The Spanish Inquisition?" She finished firmly.

Inwardly though, she was congratulating herself over and over again for being able to come up with some sort of reasonable answer for him. _'Huh. Showed him…no one traps Helga G. Pataki and gets away with it, bucko.'_

Arnold blinked. He certainly wasn't expecting that response out of her. But she did have a point. Who was he to assume that Helga and Cecile were the same person just based on the fact that they wore the same shoes? It was a popular brand of shoes, after all. There had to have been at least a million other pairs out there. But still . . . something was bugging him. When Helga's family came to live with him and the boarders, Helga had only one shoe in her possession—just like the one he kept in his possession. He looked up at her with renewed confidence.

"I see . . . then if you don't mind my asking, what happened to your other shoe, Helga?" he asked curiously.

Now, it was Helga's turn to blink. She certainly hadn't expected that response out of him. She averted her eyes to avoid his green.

"I . . . uh . . . well, you see . . . I . . . lost it." She answered lamely. Hey, at least it was something.

She slowly returned her eyes to his face to see his reaction. Oddly enough, he actually seemed to be really mulling over her response. Then, he gave her his half-lidded smile.

"Interesting . . . what a coincidence that Cecile lost her other shoe as well," he returned casually, his eyes still on hers.

"Um . . . yeah, coincidence heh, heh…" She answered nervously. She froze when she heard him continue.

"And . . . come to think of it, on that night that Cecile and I had our date, she wore the same bow and the same dress. . . ."

Now, Helga was really flustered. "W-weird, huh? You think maybe she was some kind of stalker heh, heh?" She asked, smiling sheepishly.

Arnold grinned at that. "You could say that . . ." He said, recalling a certain incident where a girl confessed her feelings to him on top of the FTi building. He could still remember how shocked he was upon hearing that particular revelation.

Helga gulped, recalling the same incident. She did not like where this was going.

He continued.

"Yeah . . . and it's also weird how she had the same sweet voice and . . . radiant blue eyes and. . ." he said in his sultry voice. He took a step towards her, causing Helga's eyes to go wide.

_'Wha—? What did he just say?' _she thought.

He was looking at her with that same love-sick smile he gave all the other girls he liked-liked in the past. Part of her wanted to swoon right there and faint from absolute euphoria at what was happening, but the other more reasonable part of her knew that this was not a good place for her to be in. He was coming dangerously close to discovering Cecile's identity. She took a step back in utter panic, but in doing so, she tripped over some science books that were still lying around on the floor. Consequently, one of her pigtails had come loose during the fall.

"Oof!" She said. "Oh Crimeny! What next?!" She complained, referring to her aching backside.

Out of habit, she looked up to find Arnold's widened green eyes staring back down at her disbelievingly.

"Cecile! It is you! Helga, I knew it! You're Cecile!" He exclaimed.

For a moment, Helga could only look on in shock, wondering what the heck he was referring to. That is, until her eyes followed his line of vision to her hair. Eyes widened, she immediately reached for her hair tie and began frantically trying to re-do her pigtail until a warm hand grabbed her wrist causing her to cease her actions. She looked up at him with a frightened look on her face, but Arnold smiled at her reassuringly.

"Helga . . . it's okay. I'm not angry," he said in as soft as tone as he could muster.

His soothing voice seemed to calm her a bit and she allowed him to heave her up to his standing position.

"So, uh, I guess the jig is up, huh?" he heard her voice quietly. Arnold watched as Helga's blue eyes searched his nervously. He never saw her so shy like this. It was actually kind of…cute.

"But . . . um . . . just so we're clear. You wouldn't believe me if I told you that I'm Cecile's twin sister, right?" She asked hesitantly.

Arnold shook his head, grinning.

"Or a distant cousin?"

He shook his head again.

"Or was abducted by aliens and replaced by a clone named Cecile who happened to know that you were having a date with another girl named Cecile that night?"

He raised an eyebrow. Okay, now he was amused. Where in the world did she come up with that one?

After receiving a look from her beloved, Helga crossed her arms over her chest and looked away, blushing.

"Hey! It could happen!" She protested.

At that, Arnold chuckled warmly to himself, trying to stifle his laughter, yet failing miserably. He burst out laughing. He couldn't help himself. It was just too funny. Was she being serious with that last one?

Seeing Arnold's change in attitude, Helga just wore a blank expression. _'He's . . . laughing? At least it's better than him glaring at me, but still . . . what the heck is he laughing at?'_ She couldn't help, but feel a little offended. Was he laughing . . . at her?

"Hey, what the heck is so funny, paste-for-brains?" She asked, angrily.

Arnold had to take a moment to control his laughter. "H-Helga, I'm sorry, but…" he paused to wipe a tear from his eye, chuckling lightly. "Abducted by aliens? Really?"

"Hey, you'll thank me that you were prepared for when it really happens." She said, rolling her eyes.

Arnold just shook his head, smiling. She really did have quite an imagination, didn't she?

"And I thought I was the dreamer," Arnold chuckled.

"Okay, you know what? You can be the first one they abduct. See if I care." She said with a 'hmph'.

"Whatever you say, Helga," he said with a half-lidded smile.

"Darn right, Football Head. Whatever _I_ say." She said, grinning.

For a moment, they both stared into each other's eyes, enjoying this uninterrupted moment together. Slowly, they both leaned in close to each other.

And closer.

And closer until their faces were just a few inches apart.

When . . . the door to Arnold's room suddenly swung open.

"Hey there, Shortman. I was just popping in to see if you and your friend here wanted any of the cookies that Pookie made and—" he paused at the sight in front of him. Arnold and Helga were now looking away from each other, both with deep blushes on their faces.

"Oh ho! A real ladies man, aren't we Arnold?" Phil chuckled. "Well . . . I'll just leave these cookies right here, in case you two want any. But I guess you two would prefer to be alone right now, so I'll leave. Have fun, you two. But not too much fun, if you know what I mean heh, heh. I'm such a wily old coot." Phil said as he closed the door behind him.

Back in Arnold's room, Arnold and Helga just remained silent for a moment, still in the same position that Arnold's grandfather left them. Finally, Helga voiced what they were both thinking.

"So . . . uh . . . w-what just happened?" She asked, nervously.

Arnold wasn't much better off. "I . . . uh . . . really . . . don't know. I think we just got, uh, a little carried away." He said.

"H-heat of the moment?" She offered.

"Uh . . . yeah, heh, heh . . . heat of the moment . . ." Arnold said, absentmindedly. _'I . . . almost kissed her.'_ Arnold thought in disbelief. _'I almost kissed . . . Helga G. Pataki.'_

"Um . . . Arnold?"

Helga's voice suddenly broke his thoughts. She was blushing furiously.

Arnold looked to Helga, smiling nervously.

"Uh . . . y-yes, Helga?" He replied.

"Your hand . . . it's, uh . . . still holding mine heh heh . . ." _'I know, I know . . . I should probably be enjoying this, but Crimeny, does he even KNOW what this is doing to me? If he doesn't remove his hand right now, I'm seriously going to lose it…'_

Realizing the issue, Arnold quickly removed his hand. "Oh! Uh . . . sorry, Helga." He said, rubbing the back of his head with one of his hands sheepishly. His entire face was now a deep shade of red.

"Oh, um . . . don't . . . don't mention it, uh, Football Head heh heh." She responded, equally flustered.

Arnold checked his watch. The time showed 10:30 p.m. "So, uh, it's getting pretty late. We should probably be getting to bed about now," he said, looking to Helga.

"Yeah, especially since we've got to listen to Simmons drone on tomorrow about that science project due next week," she agreed.

Helga headed over to the red sofa and laid down on it while Arnold headed to his own bed.

"Night, Helga," he said.

"Night, Football Head," Helga returned the sentiment, pulling the covers closer to her.

Arnold reached over to turn out the lights.

"Hey . . . Arnold?" Helga's voice asked quietly.

Arnold looked over at her. "Yes, Helga? What is it?" he asked.

She blushed. "Did you really mean what you said earlier? About how you think you _like-like _the girl who wrote in the pink diary?"

Arnold froze, remembering saying something similar to that. He gulped, blushing. "Helga . . . that wasn't . . . that wasn't _your_ diary, was i—?"

"Goodnight!" Helga's voice quickly cut in as she yanked the covers over her head.

Arnold sighed. _'I guess she'll tell me in her own time,' _he thought. Then, he smiled, reflecting on the day's events. He reached over, turned out the lights, and settled into the covers. He closed his eyes. Perhaps it was worth the wait.

When Helga didn't hear anything else, she opened her eyes, thinking about what just occurred. _'Stupid, stupid me! Arnold was so close to finding out that the owner of the diary was me, and I had to blow it by chickening out! I mean, what am I, a coward?' _She , she sighed. _'It's just . . . I'm not sure I'm ready for things to change yet. And besides, even if Arnold did like-like me, he still wouldn't be head-over-heels in love with me like I am with him. And what if he were to decide I wasn't the right one for him? It would break me. Nuh-uh. There's NO way I'm going to let Arnold find out that I'm the diary's owner, and that's final.' _With that, she closed her eyes and became one with the darkness.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>:

Hmm . . . it looks like Helga's having doubts about pursuing a potential relationship with Arnold. Hopefully, Arnold, with the help of Phoebe's little science experiment, can help ease those doubts in the next chapter. Stay tuned for chapter 4!

And as always, reviews are greatly appreciated! Until next time . . . cheers!


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